KUALA TERENGGANU: A total of 23 breeders in Kampung Beladau Selat and Kampung Beladau Kepong here suffered losses amounting to RM1.3mil when the freshwater fish that they had been farming since a year ago died due to the unusual floods that hit the area on Sunday (Feb 27).

       Mohd Zelan Mat, 55, of Kampung Beladau Selat said fast-flowing muddy floodwater killed tilapia and patin (silver catfish) in 59 cages in the village and four in Kampung Beladau Kepong with a total weight of 126 tonnes.

       He said he incurred RM268,000 in losses when 25 tonnes of tilapia and patin he reared in 17 cages were destroyed.

       "The fish had grown big and could be sold. The losses do not include the dead fish fry.

       "I wanted to sell the fish for the upcoming fasting month. After two years of not being able to sell a lot of fish due to the MCO (movement control order), I thought this year I could make some profits, alas this (floods) happened,” he told Bernama on Thursday (March 3).

       Mohd Zelan, who has been farming freshwater fish in the area for 10 years, said that the Sunday floods were the worst ever since they ventured into the business in 1995, due to the amount of mud the floodwater brought.

       He said even the massive floods in 2014 that struck the East Coast did not cause such a devastating effect on his fish farm.

       Meanwhile, Marwan Bidin, 34, whose endeavour started more than a year ago, said he suffered about RM20,000 in losses as 12 tonnes of tilapia and patin he reared in six cages died.

       Marwan said he had spent RM40,000 of his two-year savings to start the freshwater fish project.

       He said tilapia and patin were not as resilient as other fish such as catfish and baung that could survive strong currents and murky water, adding that he accepted his fate.

       Fellow breeder, Ahmad Salman Sazali, 22, claimed the fast-flowing and murky water that hit the fish farms in Sungai Terengganu originated from Sungai Berang in Hulu Terengganu.

       "We had to build cages in the middle of the river because the fish could not survive in shallow waters. However, currents are strong there, especially during flood season,” he said, adding that he lost three tonnes of tilapia and patin worth RM30,000 in the disaster.

       Meanwhile, state Agriculture, Agro-based Industry and Rural Development Committee chairman Dr Azman Ibrahim advised fish breeders affected by floods to report their losses to the relevant authorities such as the Fisheries Development Authority of Malaysia (LKIM) and the police so that the government could channel aid to them.

       "Take photos, report it to the relevant departments and lodge a police report. Further action will be handled at the department level whether the Agriculture, Veterinary, or Fisheries Departments or LKIM,” he said. - Bernama