Following the discovery of the body, the department has started an aggressive search and rescue (SAR) mission, mobilising all its assets with assistance from other agencies, said its director-general Muhammad Hamdan Wahid.

“We believe the SAR missions have become challenging at the moment because of the piles of logs, rubbish, slime, bushes, and damaged construction material left behind by the flood water.

“Yesterday, we managed to discover and remove a body of a drowned victim, under mud at a depth of 3.65m using the K9 unit,” Sinar Harian quoted Hamdan as saying during a press conference at the disaster control command centre in Sri Muda today.

He also said his men are ramping up their SAR operations for five victims in areas like Kampung Tanjung, Telemong in Bentong; Laman Pesona Cheroh in Raub; and Taman Tas in Kuantan, all in Pahang.

“We have also mobilised all of our department’s assets including the K9 units to track all victims that are reported missing. The SAR operations are being prioritised since it involves peoples’ lives,” he said.

He added that his men are carrying out thorough monitoring operations in all flood-prone locations in three main states – Pahang, Sarawak and Selangor.

JBPM, according to Hamdan, was prepared to face any possibility of a second wave of floods, with more rains forecast for Dec 29 by the meteorological department (MetMalaysia).

“Based on the forecast, the fire department will intensify its monitoring efforts by focussing on 34 areas in Sarawak, 20 flood-prone areas in Selangor and 17 at-risk areas in Pahang,” he said.