TWELVE Bruneian students will be boarding a 1pm homebound flight today after camping at the Brisbane International Airport to leave the danger zone created by the floods in Australia.
One of the students, Danial Mahmud who is studying at Queensland University of Technology (QUT), told The Brunei Times that the hectic situation will soon be coming to an end, after he received a call from the Brunei High Commission at 6am yesterday.
Danial was told by the official from the High Commission to gather all the Bruneian students in the QUT Kelvin Grove campus and meet at an in-service student lodging.
"The only thing that's allowing us to do all this is the fact that there has not been any rain since midnight last night."
Danial said, "Everything is uncertain, and could change for the worse at any time, but the peak water level is expected to be reached at 4am (today), which is why we're making a move right now".
He said two Bruneians, Denny Muslim and Syahmi Abdullah were "voluntarily driving around Brisbane to pick up and drop off Bruneians" as much of the public transport is not operational.
After several calls, Danial packed in a flash as Denny and Syahmi was to take him to the airport where he stayed the night.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade in Brunei yesterday quoted the Brunei Darussalam High Commission in Canberra as saying that students in Queensland are safe.
"The students in Queensland are safe and are gathered in a secure location away from flood areas," read the statement.
The Brunei Times contacted the Brunei High Commission in Canberra about the ongoing situations.
Brunei High Commission Officer Syed Rozman Syed Abd Rahim commented that, "We have contacted every Bruneian student in Brisbane and informed them we have instituted a place of accommodation in a safer and higher ground area away from the floods".
A highrise apartment has been readily available for the students at the suburbs of Kelvin Grove.
Some students living in high ground areas are not quite affected except that they complained that some bus areas are flooded and that they are stuck in their homes. Transportation has been troublesome for some students since almost 30 suburban areas at the Brisbane CBD zone has been affected by flash floods and stand isolated.
"Where we live, since it's a higher ground area ... but the rain has been non-stop for the past few weeks and it's almost impossible for us to travel to other parts of Brisbane because of the flood," said Griffith University student Abdul Hakam Hj Mulok, 26.
Another student, Hj Mohammad Zulhilmi Hj Kifli, 24 said, "Some of our campuses are still continuing with the classes but other universities have closed down".
Source: The Brunei Times
Brisbane Hotline +61430751538, +61450131113
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