KOTA KINABALU — Several villages at the foothills of Mount Kinabalu have been hit by mud and landslides, cutting off access between the towns of Mesilau and Kundasang some 10 days after the area was hit by a deadly earthquake.

Non-stop rain since Saturday has caused boulders “as big as cars”, mud, tree logs and other debris to flow down a river, overflowing and trapping villagers from leaving their homes. Two bridges also collapsed on Monday.

Ranau district meteorological department said that the rocks and boulders were most likely debris from the magnitude-6.0 earthquake that had gotten stuck along the river and were dislodged by the heavy rain, sending them further downstream. “We have checked the area and we think the rocks and boulders are most likely the effects of the earthquake that had been stuck upstream,” said the official.

The area is home to the Mesilau Nature Resort, another jump-off point to reach the Mount Kinabalu summit, along with several holiday chalets, homestays and the Mount Kinabalu Golf Club. Fire and Rescue Services Department on Monday evacuated some 125 people from Kampung Mesilau and surrounding areas after the mud flows caused water shortages, power cuts and road damages.

“Seven people from the Mesilau Nature Resort had moved to higher ground for fear of getting stuck. But road access had prevented us from evacuating them sooner, so we had to find another way to reach them,” said the department’s Ranau district senior officer Jaminak Kasuman.

“Eventually, with the help of the locals, we found out there was an unused trail, and drove up through a rough terrain via Kampung Liposuk.”

A resident claimed hundreds of fish were stranded at the river bank because of the strong currents, some dead.

The authorities are still trying to assess the damage, with the police urging villagers to report the damage from the earthquake on June 5 along with the 70 aftershocks since.

“We want all government agencies, private owned businesses and individuals all over Sabah, who have suffered damages to make police reports. So far we have only received four reports here,” said Kota Kinabalu district police chief assistant commissioner M Chandra.

Speaking to TODAY, Sabah Parks director Dr Jamili Nais said the mountain was spared from further damage from the landslides.

“(It has) nothing to do with the (Mount Kinabalu Park), (it is) just the surrounding villages,” he said, adding that authorities have yet to embark on the restoration efforts. “We are waiting until all the tremors have stopped then we will do a proper assessment.”

The earthquake on June 5 killed 18 people, among them nine Singaporeans and one Singapore permanent resident.

The Malaysian government has announced several initiatives to enhance safety on Mount Kinabalu in the wake of the disaster such as installing advanced seismic sensors to enable geologists to monitor ground activity and issuing warnings if there is danger of an imminent earthquake.

Mr Najib also announced that the federal government would provide RM10 million (S$3.6 million) for restoration work on the mountain, which is a heritage site. AGENCIES, with additional reporting by Amanda Lee