KOTA KINABALU: Each time floodwaters rise in Kampung Rancangan Cocos, Paitan, Shandir Lua fears his house will not withstand the night.

As currents rush beneath his wooden home, the entire structure trembles, with its pillars wearing thinner each flood.

“The house shakes so badly that we feel like it might collapse with us inside,” said the 47-year-old.

“My parents are elderly. They have diabetes. If the house goes down, how do I save them,” he told The Star last week.

Shandir lives in the wooden stilt house with his wife, Norimah Eting, 53, their daughter Nur Husnina Qalesya, 16, and his elderly parents, aged 73 and 62.

For years, Shandir has pleaded for help and submitted multiple requests for aid, but no assistance has come.

He has tried to reinforce the wooden pillars himself, packing them with bricks and cement, but the repeated floods have caused the cement to crack and the bricks to break, weakening his home’s foundation.

Paitan, a remote sub-district in Sabah’s Beluran district, is known for its scattered villages, challenging road access, and frequent flooding, making it vulnerable during the monsoon season.

Flooding occurs almost every three months at his house. Even when the rest of the village is unaffected, the road in front of his home turns into a river, cutting him off.

Every serious flood hits his home first and is the last to recede, making him the worst affected resident in his village.

“I’ve tried everything, but it keeps getting worse,” he said.

With nowhere else to go, his family must wait out the floods each time, rationing food and supplies.

His daughter has missed school for up to a week whenever floods hit, a growing concern as she prepares for SPM next year.

The family has already lost a car to the floods. Last year, rising waters badly damaged it.

He spent money repairing it, only for another flood to hit, leaving it beyond saving. Now, they rely on their motorcycle, but even that becomes useless when the road is submerged.

Beyond the damage to his home, flooding often leaves his family stranded for days, unable to reach a shop or clinic if needed.

“We can’t leave. The road is underwater. If my parents need medical help, there’s nothing we can do,” he added.

Villagers believe excessive sedimentation and clogged drainage are worsening the floods.

“The river has become shallower. It used to drain floodwater faster, but now it’s clogged. Water has nowhere to go,” he said.

While authorities have visited and acknowledged the problem, no action has been taken.

The family has patched up the house as best they can, but it is not a permanent solution.

Despite the struggles, Shandir does not want to leave. He has lived on this land his whole life and cannot afford to move elsewhere.

“This is my land, my home. I just hope the government will take action and fix the drainage so we don’t have to live like this,” he said.

For now, all he can do is wait and hope that the next flood won’t be the one that finally washes his home away.