GOPIO Flood Relief and Response

On the 25th and 26th of December 2021, GOPIO Malaysia had a clean-up of the flood-affected areas of Hulu Langat. The group, which consists of 20 people from GOPIO Seniors, GOPIO Youth, and Malaysia Hindu Dharma Mamandram, had gathered at the GOPIO Office at 6:45 AM before moving to Hulu Langat to start the cleaning. Joined with a desire and the heart to clean the flood victims’ houses, the group managed to clean 7 houses in the 2 days. With all the hardship during the pandemic, the group made sure to follow the SOP by wearing masks all the time during the clean-up and took all the safety measures to ensure no further issues in the future to any party.

During these 2 days, the group managed to talk to a few families and understood the hardship they were facing during this time. The amount of losses they have faced is unbearable in a manner as not only furniture is destroyed but also many electrical appliances, memorable pictures, gifts, clothes, and more. During one of the moments, a member from the affected family showed his graduation picture which was destroyed, and left only the frame in the flood and said that the only proof that showed his achievement was destroyed. It was heartbreaking to see moments like this during the clean-up. 

During the cleaning up process, the team also managed to understand more about the lifestyle of the victims and also the basics of quick actions during an emergency based on the experience shared by the victims. The victims expressed their dissatisfaction with the work that is being taken by the local authorities. That made the team realize how important this service was to the survivors. Nevertheless, the residents of the area did not stop working, none of them gave up on their houses and neighborhood as they were helping each other out to build their homes back to normal. It was terrifying to hear and also very insightful to know what can be done during times like that.

After the cleaning up the team donated a few electrical appliances such as a Rice cooker, a High-pressure water sprayer, and other appliances.

The satisfaction of cleaning the mud-filled damaged household and seeing the smile on the faces of the flood victims after the clean-up process was just beautiful. As the saying goes “Teamwork makes the dream work” is very much applicable in this process. Being all united and working together to help the ones in need showed that humanity does still exist in this world. Nothing is impossible without a small effort and hard work with proper goals and a team.