© THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORKA sinkhole caused by a landslide in Tanjung Bungah. The state’s worst floods caused more than 3,500 people to be evacuated from Penang, mostly on the mainland.
Seven people have died and thousands evacuated as Penang was inundated by up to 4m of water after an 18-hour storm that ended yesterday morning.
The state's worst flooding caused its Chief Minister to enlist Malaysia's police and military to help with relief efforts.
At least seven people have died due to the storm, said police. Five of them have been identified.
The remaining two victims are still unknown, though one of them is believed to be a Bangladeshi man who died when his home was crushed by a falling tree. One person, a resident of Bukit Tambun, is reported to be missing.
More than 3,500 people were evacuated from Penang, mostly on the mainland, with another 2,000 in neighbouring Kedah forced to leave their homes.
Winds from the storm - which the authorities said were due to Typhoon Damrey which killed at least 27 people in Vietnam - were so strong that a ferry was washed ashore in Butterworth, the main town of mainland Penang, while a landslide-cum-sinkhole tore up a road in front of a row of newly built luxury houses on the island.
Comment: Penang recorded the highest rainfall in its history at 315mm - 45 mm more than the previous record of 270mm recorded on Sept 15, this year which also resulted in huge flooding.