**5. Conclusion**

**Figure 9** shows the boat operation course and water survival simulation conducted by Kemaman District and Land Office that involved the headmen, local people and government agencies. The simulation exercise aimed to provide exposure to the person responsible for the search and rescue of flood victims, which was the preliminary planning of the Kemaman authorities, in

Kemaman also practises the concept of transformational leadership known as on-scene leadership, which allows the responsible person to spontaneously act as leader and give instructions

ensuring that pilot actions have been taken and prepared with any possible occurrence.

**Figure 8.** Kemaman District Disaster Management Committee. Note: National Security Council (NSC)

96 Achievements and Challenges of Integrated River Basin Management

**Figure 9.** Boat operation course and water survival simulation.

A warmer atmosphere brought by climate change will result in increased precipitation or water vapour. For Malaysia, which lies in a wet region, this means heavier rainfall rates. The growth in population (and development), which dictates changes in land use to support their needs, has also increased the severity of flood disaster. As such, improvement over methods for flood governance and management has become even more important. Lessons garnered from the big flood of 2014 must be quickly translated into actionable items for managing future floods, especially in the non-urban areas in Malaysia.

Use of information technology combined with mobile apps and social media for data collection and storage, information sharing and decision making by the Kemaman flood team have only become successful due to the commitment of everyone involved to diligently participate in the development, training and simulation of flood protection, and providing feedback for improvement. Likewise, in the development of the Kemaman SOP (dubbed the gold standard SOP), the SOP was successful partly due to the awareness programmes and training drills to ensure that it was understood and executable.

Last but not least, engagement of the local community was one of the key ingredients to success. Technological sophistication will not, at least in the near future, match the effectiveness of a familiar "local" hero – one who understands the local dialect, remembers the topography (landmarks and such) by heart when road signage becomes unreliable and knows the community members and neighbours.

[5] TMMO. Worst floods in Kelantan, Confirms NSC. 2014. Available from: http://www. themalaymailonline.com/malaysia/article/worst-floods-in-kelantan-confirms-nsc [6] Mohd Khairuddin AR. Bah Kuning: Jangan tuding jari salahkan Kelantan. [Internet]. Malaysia (MY): Harakah Daily; 2015. [Cited January 10, 2015]. Available from: http:// www.harakahdaily.net/index.php/ berita-utama/33177-bah-kuning-jangan-tuding-jari-

Engagement of Local Heroes in Managing Flood Disaster: Lessons Learnt from the 2014 Flood…

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[7] Anonymous. Indiscriminate Logging: One of the Causes of Kelantan Floods. [Internet]. Malaysia (MY): Bernama; 2015. [Cited January 3, 2015]. Available at: http://www.therakyatpost.com/news/2015/01/03/indiscriminate-logging-one-causes-kelantan-floods/ [8] Sapa dpa. One Missing, Thousands Flee Homes in Flood-hit North-Eastern Malaysia. Midrand (SA): The New Age; 2014. [Cited January 12, 2015]. Available from: http://www. thenewage.co.za/mobi/Detail.aspx?New sID=146581&CatID=1020#sthash.B8XJbU71.dpuf

[9] AFP. Malaysia: Floods and Landslides – December 2014. 2014. Available from: http://

[10] Baharuddin KA. The record-setting flood of 2014 in Kelantan: Challenges and recommendations from an emergency medicine perspective and why the medical campus

reliefweb.int/report/malaysia/floods-kill-21-malaysia-waters-recede

stood dry. Malaysian Journal of Medical Science. 2015;**22**(2):1-7

salahkan-kelantan

Considering the above, it is suggested that the flood governance and management platform be developed to engage the local community.
