Picture 2: Department stores on Java Street-now Jalan Tun Perak-were among thousands of businesses affected by the "Great Flood" of 1926. [6]

So, when is the end of this series of catastrophic episodes? Are we continuing to be on the thin ice to face the same calamity every year? Climate change doesn’t break a system, it shows a broken system. How should the government repair and reform it? First and foremost, according to New Strait Times, it was reported that a total of 68 agencies were involved in the disaster management structure, consisting of 27 federal agencies, 22 states and 19 district agencies. [8] Despite all these efforts that cost the government billion ringgits on flood control, its effectiveness is evident. A lecturer at University Sains Malaysia noted, "The federal government’s agencies don’t have enough info -- what is the exact location that is prone to be impacted during disasters. So, when the federal government came in and mobilized resources to the area without consulting the local experts, this is where certain areas lack of support and other areas got more support.” [9] Consequently, better coordination among a large number of agencies needs to be constructed to centralize the aids and unify the command. Let’s take concrete steps, the federal government should only tackle the strategic aspect of flood response such as distributing the deployed resources, while the state and district level committees should lead the responses and on-site operations at their respective levels.

Apart from that, a transparent, high-precision, and improved forecasting warning system to address climate change events is desperately needed. Instead of just having a warning system that could warn floods a few hours or days in advance, we demand an early warning system that could be easily assessed even at 2 am when the disaster strikes. Let’s take a look at the situation in the Philippines, they can predict the typhoon will be crossing the district and affecting 150, 000 people as they have proper analysis and a good database. [10] A comprehensive warning system that owns data issued with how many people are affected - how many of them are male or female, how many of them are underprivileged needs to be invested.

Last but not empathetically least, the government needs to fund proper maintenance of drainage such as paying contractors to clean up and remove rubbish from drains two months before the monsoon season. Moreover, the use of nature-based solutions such as conserving and restoring mangroves should also be explored to reduce the risk of flooding as these measures are eco-friendlier and more affordable.

Climate change is never a distant issue, yet flood will deteriorate due to climate change, we cannot eradicate natural disasters, but we could arm ourselves with knowledge: so many lives wouldn’t have to be lost if there was enough disaster preparedness. To the beloved Malaysians reading this, please continue to survive and pull through the ordeals, and never feel desperate. To the NGOs reading this, please never stop donating and supporting the victims.

**Not against the government but urge for better implementation of policies.