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TEJ KUMAR KARKI: Hello,
my name is Tej Karki.

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I'm a visiting scholar in the
MIT-UTM Malaysian Sustainable

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Cities Program.

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I welcome viewers to watch
this video about the challenges

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of urban flooding in Malaysia.

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Floods are the third
most destructive disaster

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in the world, after
storms and earthquakes.

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In Malaysia, floods account
for 90% of natural disasters.

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The average annual
costs of flood damage

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are over $100 million US.

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In this video,

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I will show how residents
and local authorities

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dealt with floods in Kota Tinggi
town in southern Malaysia,

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and what the global community
can learn from this experience.

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The key message is that
this video provides

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is that the residents
and local authorities

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should not only
strengthen their ability

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to deal with flood
disasters, but also

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communicate with each other
and take joint action.

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From December 2006
to January 2007,

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huge floods that
would normally be

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expected to occur
every 50 years,

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occurred twice in Kota Tinggi.

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Heavy monsoon rain
poured continuously

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for five days in
mid December 2006.

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The rain prompted huge
flooding in the area.

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Upstream flood
control dams failed

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to contain the excess water.

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As a result, the downstream
Johor river water levels

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rose rapidly and flooded
all of Kota Tinggi.

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For one week, the
town was under water.

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Two weeks later, the
rain started again

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and lasted four days.

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Since the soil was already
saturated with water

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from the previous
flood, it could not

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absorb any more flood water.

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As a result, this rain generated
an even deeper and more

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widespread flood in the area.

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Between the two flood
events, over 5,000 residents

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were evacuated.

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Fifteen people were killed,
and $44 million US of property

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was damaged.

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Many town residents did not
receive early warning messages

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in time.

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The huge unexpected flood
shocked both the town residents

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and local authorities.

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Some residents
left for shelters,

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some were stranded
on roofs, and others

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sheltered in tall
buildings near their home.

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Those who took refuse in the
houses of their loved ones

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were also flooded.

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Eventually, they had
to go to shelters.

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Many were not able to
protect valuable assets

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like cars and furniture.

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One resident, who was on a
trip abroad during the flood

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incident, lost everything.

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Another resident's
downtown boutique shop

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went completely underwater.

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Those residents who were busy
praying inside their homes

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did not anticipate that
the flood would rise

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so fast in their front yard.

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Those who did not go to
the shelter in the daytime

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had difficulty getting
rescued at night.

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Most residents were not trained
in how to respond to flooding.

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The households did not
discuss flood issues

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with their neighbors, and
they acted individually.

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The flood victims
rescue needs far

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exceeded the ability of the
Kota Tinggi district authority.

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The firefighters had
limited resources

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to respond to mounting
calls for rescue.

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SPEAKER: (Non-English)

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TEJ KUMAR KARKI: Most city
transport routes and vehicles

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were inundated
causing a disruption

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in the supply of basic goods.

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Because of the
disruption in the supply,

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the local authorities had a hard
time meeting demand for food.

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Providing clean water
and better sanitation

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were are other challenges.

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More importantly,
the town itself

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is located in a flood risk area.

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It sits largely on a flood
plain near the Johor river

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that is often inundated
due to high tides.

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Even so, the local zoning map
does not show flood risk areas

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in the town.

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New housing developments are
now under way in areas that

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were heavily inundated in 2006.

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Furthermore, most houses
developed in flood risk areas

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have low [INAUDIBLE].

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Private housing
developers prefer

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building low [INAUDIBLE] to
minimize construction costs

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and maximize profits.

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This development trend
makes the ground floor

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vulnerable to any ordinary
flooding in the area.

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This goes against the
traditional Malaysian practice

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of building houses on stilts.

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For cities and towns
in the global south,

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the Malaysian experience
reveals three priorities

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for flood preparedness--
educating and empowering

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local residents,
strengthening the capacity

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of local authorities, and
improving local zoning

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regulations.

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First, the local authorities
should educate and involve

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local residents in all
flood related issues.

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This would encourage
the residents

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to form a neighborhood level
flood prevention community.

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Second, the authorities should
establish a reliable flood

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warning system.

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They should make sure
that firefighters

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have enough equipment,
manpower, and advanced training

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to respond and rescue.

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The firefighters should
work with local residents,

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train them, and develop a joint
strategy on coping with floods.

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Finally, plenty authorities
should create a zoning map

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that shows flood
risk areas in town

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and that prohibits
new development

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in those risky areas.

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They should provide monetary
incentives to residents

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to raise their house
floors above the ground.

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The authorities should
relocate and resettle residents

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living in flood prone
areas to higher ground.

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The experiences
presented above showed

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that the residents, as
well as local authorities

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need to strengthen
their ability to deal

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with flood disasters in cities.

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However, their strengths
will not be as effective

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if they act separately.

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Both the city residents
and local authorities

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should work together,
talk to each other,

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learn from each other,
and act collectively

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to find ways to deal
with flood disaster.

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