Police have confirmed that no criminal activity or theft cases have been reported in the storm-affected areas of Bercham, despite several homes still being temporarily vacated by residents following the recent disaster.
Ipoh district police chief, Assistant Commissioner Muhammad Najib Hamzah, said authorities are maintaining strict monitoring in the affected zones, particularly during nighttime, to prevent any untoward incidents.
He said security control has been strengthened across five disaster zones to safeguard residents and their property while recovery efforts continue.
“Alhamdulillah, so far there have been no reports of crime or missing items.
“At night, we will enforce tighter control as certain areas such as Anjung Bercham are still without full electricity supply,” he said during a press conference at the Bercham Police Station on Sunday.
Muhammad Najib added that residents are still allowed to return to their homes to carry out cleaning and recovery work despite the ongoing situation.
He further revealed that police had received a total of 492 reports related to the storm incident as of 8am, with 373 reports coming from residents within the affected zones and 119 from individuals outside the disaster areas.
“These reports mainly involve property damage and various incidents reported by complainants,” he said.
According to data from the Social Welfare Department (JKM) as of Saturday evening, a total of 349 families have been registered as disaster victims.
However, authorities believe the actual number may differ as some houses remain unoccupied and certain residents have opted to stay elsewhere temporarily.
In a related development, Muhammad Najib said four individuals were checked at 1am following controlled access enforcement in the affected areas.
He said the individuals included a Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB) contractor and three Telekom Malaysia contractors involved in recovery and repair works.
He added that the total estimated losses from the disaster have yet to be determined as assessment work is still ongoing.
On Friday, reports indicated that more than 200 homes in Anjung Bercham were affected after continuous heavy rain and strong winds hit the area for nearly two hours.
Among the affected locations were Hala Tasek Timur 1, Lorong Bercham 19, Dataran Tasek Timur, Lintasan Tasek Timur 1 and 3, Hala Tasek Timur 34, and Laluan Tasek Timur 15.
Most of the damage involved roofs being torn off, leaking ceilings, and structural damage, although no casualties were reported during the incident.
