KOTA KINABALU: Heavy-to-moderate rain in Sabah has replenished many dried-out rivers, which has led to the restart of water production.

Deputy Chief Minister III Datuk Shahelmey Yahya said the Sabah Water Department’s treatment plant at Limbahau in the west coast of Papar district re-commenced operation on Sunday evening with a starting capacity of 5MLD (million litres daily).

The private water producer Jetama’s adjacent plant in Limbahau was operating at the maximum capacity of 13MLD, he added.

“The arrival of rain on some days last week has brought good news.

“I have also received an update from the Water Department director that there was rain in Pulau Sebatik (Tawau) and Banggi island (Kudat).

“I will be getting updates once the water treatment production is back to full operations later,” said the state Works Minister yesterday.

Drought hit Papar for nearly three weeks, forcing the shutdown of water treatment plants along the Papar river on March 13, after seawater flowed into the plants due to the river drying up.

Over the weekend, many areas across Sabah reported moderate-to-heavy rainfall with the onset of the inter-monsoon after the severely hot and dry spell since the start of the year in February.

On March 27, the state government started an emergency water supply mission to over 355 villages with more than 50,000 households in 12 districts affected by the prolonged dry spell.

Cloud seeding was also conducted for three days from March 28 over water catchment areas in Papar, Tawau and Lahad Datu, with some success seen in Pulau Sebatik where the water treatment plant can operate on a minimal basis.

https://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2024/04/09/showers-over-sabah-bring-rivers-back-to-life