SEMARANG: What else will “disappear” as a result of this?
Most locals expressed their sadness at witnessing their community, Kampung Semarang, continue to become a victim of the big storm in the South China Sea.
They previously cried when the Darul Ihsan Mosque, which had been in existence for decades, collapsed in 2020 due to a huge tsunami.
More tragically, due to increasingly severe erosion, the old graves beside the mosque were also washed away.
Last Wednesday (Jan 25), inclement weather combined with a king tide phenomenon resulted in large waves destroying 700m of village roadways.
Worryingly, erosion appears to be worsening, with the distance between the water’s edge and the residents’ residences and SK Semarang estimated to be fewer than 100m.
The 700m-long road that was damaged, according to Semarang village head Suria Azmie, was a new area that had been affected.
“Around 5.30pm, the waves were so large that they smashed the village road near the shores.
“Before this, it was unaffected, but yesterday it was damaged and destroyed,” he said on Thursday (Jan 26).
A resident, Mohamad Syahrimin Sahadan, also expressed his sadness over what had happened.
“It’s sad to see my hometown disappear little by little to the waves of the South China Sea.
“My family’s house is quite close to the sea. The sound of the waves is very clear and loud from our house.”
The lecturer at one of the institutions of higher education in Kuching admitted that he had previously tried to help bring this issue to the attention of various parties.
“Before this, I tried to help as much as I could…bring media groups, I also created an erosion prevention programme, I have sent dozens of letters and emails to relevant agencies, including representatives of the people.
“In short, all parties knew what the residents of Kampung Semarang are facing.
“I can’t imagine in the next 10 years…how this beloved hometown will be?” he added.
For the record in April last year, Sarawak Department of Irrigation and Drainage (DID) director Ir Ahmad Denney Ahmad Fauzi (at that time) while reviewing the situation in Kampung Semarang stated that the construction of the breakwater on the banks should have been carried out last year.
However, until now (2023) residents have not seen any of the work process of the RM6.5mil project.
According to Ahmad Denney when contacted by Suara Sarawak last year, construction work was expected to start by September 2022 since the allocation is already available.
And, the construction of the 400m-long embankment is expected to take 18 months.
As another step to overcome the erosion, he also informed that Sarawak DID also made an application to the federal government to repair the eroded banks.
For example, the proposal to repair 2km of the banks of Kampung Semarang was estimated to cost RM19mil.
New damage due to strong waves that lashed the banks of Kampung Semarang on Wednesday.
