MIRI: Sarawak Deputy Minister for Tourism, Creative Industry and Performing Arts Datuk Sebastian Ting has called for urgent action to fast-track the Sungai Lutong Zone B flood mitigation project, citing repeated flooding in low-lying parts of Lutong as a growing hardship for residents.
Ting, who is also Piasau assemblyman, said he would escalate the matter to the Sarawak Cabinet to secure funding approval and ensure early disbursement, clearing the way for immediate implementation.
“The flood problem can no longer be allowed to persist,” he said, pointing to recurring flash floods that have caused repeated hardship, property damage and financial losses to affected communities.
He was speaking after a meeting with newly appointed Miri Department of Irrigation and Drainage (DID) director Henry Tuah and senior officers, where recent flooding incidents and the progress of key mitigation projects were reviewed.
According to DID, the Sungai Lutong Zone B project will involve the construction of detention ponds and major drainage upgrades within the Sungai Lutong B catchment.
The scope covers several high-risk sub-catchments, including SK Lutong, Kampung Sealine, Kampung Senadin Jaya, the Miri Crude Oil Terminal and Desa Senadin.
The project is expected to be opened for tender within the year, with an estimated implementation period of 60 months.
Ting said climate change has intensified extreme rainfall events, increasing the frequency and severity of flash floods, particularly in low-lying areas of his constituency.
“These areas have been hit time and again in recent years. Urgent action is required once all approvals are secured,” he said.
In a separate briefing, Ting was updated on coastal protection projects in Miri funded under Federal allocations, with a combined estimated cost of RM50 million.
The initiatives comprise five projects, including the Pantai Lutong coastal protection scheme, which will see beach nourishment works along a 1.45-kilometre stretch and the construction of a two-kilometre earth bund.
Other proposed works include rock revetment projects at Pantai Kampung Bungai, Pantai Peliau Bungai and Kampung Kuala Sibuti, each spanning one kilometre, as well as Phase Two of the Pantai Bakam project covering 0.40 kilometre.
DID said the pre-qualification exercise for the projects closed on Jan 8, with several now at different stages of evaluation.
Ting said the coastal and flood mitigation projects were critical to protecting communities, infrastructure and economic assets in Miri, and stressed the need for timely execution to deliver tangible outcomes on the ground.
