SAF COMPLETES RELIEF EFFORTS IN FLOOD-HIT KELANTAN
PHOTO // James Ng and courtesy of Singapore Army
When the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) C-130 transport plane flew over flood-hit Kelantan on 30 Dec, all that the soldiers in the flight could see were rooftops of submerged houses and buildings. Such was the scale of devastation from what was the worst flood to hit Malaysia in decades.
On board the flight was the SAF water purification team which was en route to the north-eastern state of Peninsular Malaysia, one of the worst affected areas. Their mission: To produce clean drinking water for the affected residents.
The flood had contaminated the drinking water supply, putting many at risk of falling ill from waterborne diseases. For two weeks, the SAF team, which also comprised personnel from the Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) and Public Utilities Board, successfully produced 136,000 litres of drinking water using their Water Purification Units (WPUs).
Working closely with the Malaysian Armed Forces, they distributed the purified water to the residents. The flooding has since subsided, and the SAF team has wound down its relief operation. They returned to Singapore on 14 Jan.
When Malaysia accepted Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong's offer of assistance on 29 Dec, the SAF team swung into action immediately.
"We had 12 hours to prepare, understand the requirements and get the force ready," recalled Lieutenant Colonel (LTC) Fan Mun Poh, the SAF Task Force Commander.
Seven WPUs were brought over to Kelantan: Four from the SAF, two from humanitarian organisation Mercy Relief and one from the SCDF.
The first detachment took off on 30 Dec morning, and the second detachment took off the next day.
A major challenge of the operation was getting the WPUs to process the river water that was heavily contaminated with mud, debris and sediments.
Third Sergeant Azaharie Bin Shakirin, a WPU operator, said: "The machine filters got dirty easily. We had to be on standby to wash them every half an hour."
But the WPUs are designed to process water contaminated up to a certain extent and the river water in Kelantan was a severe test of their limits.
Recalled LTC Fan: "We were putting our machines under a lot of stress The lowest point of our deployment was when we had only three working machines."
But the SAF team showed great resolve and repaired the machine, which had broken down because of the large amount of silt in the river water, within two days. Back home in Singapore, technical staff were also brainstorming for solutions to troubleshoot the WPUs.
LTC Fan added: "When you see the devastation first-hand, you realised how much that little drop of water means to them (the locals).
"When our soldiers handed over the clean water, you could sense the appreciation... That pretty much wiped out whatever frustration that you had. You know that the mission is for a good cause."
LTC Fan was also impressed with the Malaysian soldiers who had to pick themselves up from the destruction of their homeland. "They were affected by the flood, and yet they had to be at the forefront to help others. Their soldiers are courageous and committed."
