Floods finally touch 'untouchable' areas<\/p>\n
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Torrential rains pounded Jakarta and its adjacent highland
\nsuburbs in Depok and Bogor on Friday night, causing the
\nfloodwater, which had been receding the day before, to rise again
\nand even reach areas previously regarded as untouchable, flooding
\nthem to a depth of 1.5 meters.<\/p>\n
After a day of no rain and with people still dealing with the
\naftermath of the floods that paralyzed the city from Monday to
\nWednesday, the torrential rains on Friday night were concentrated
\nin Depok, with rainfall of 150 millimeters (mm), followed by
\nBogor at 126 mm and Jakarta, with 25 mm to 80 mm.<\/p>\n
The rainfall was actually lower than the peak of 250 mm on
\nTuesday, but due to the opening of the Manggarai floodgate in
\nSouth Jakarta and incessant rain in the highlands (where all 13
\nof the city's rivers originate), the flooding worsened again.<\/p>\n
Jakarta Governor Sutiyoso decided to open the floodgate after
\nmuch pressure from local residents in southern areas, who ran
\namok on Friday, as they could no longer bear being continually
\nflooded.<\/p>\n
After Manggarai floodgate was opened by 1.4 meters on Friday,
\nsome parts of the city's business, government and residential
\nareas in Menteng and Gambir districts, previously untouched by
\nflooding, saw floodwater rise to a depth of 0.5 meter to 1.5
\nmeters on Saturday.<\/p>\n
A number of office buildings in those areas, particularly on
\nJl. Sudirman, Jl. MH Thamrin, Jl. Rasuna Said, Jl. Medan Merdeka
\nSelatan and Jl. Medan Merdeka Timur, were cut off by flooding
\nuntil Saturday night.<\/p>\n
The floodwater inundated several buildings, such as Cikini
\nHospital and the five-star Regent Hotel, in Jl. Rasuna Said,
\nSouth Jakarta, to a depth of one meter, and the vice presidential
\npalace on Jl. Medan Merdeka Selatan to the depth of 0.5 meter.<\/p>\n
On Saturday afternoon, some roads saw water levels decrease
\nsignificantly. Others, including around Regent Hotel, Jl. Rasuna
\nSaid, Jl. Sudirman, Jl. Cilacap and Jl. Surabaya, Menteng, still
\nlooked like rivers, as the muddy water had receded only slightly.<\/p>\n
Regent Hotel guests had to be transported by rubber dinghies
\non Saturday to a nearby dry area so that they could travel to
\nSoekarno-Hatta Airport by bus.<\/p>\n
The flooding caused by Friday's torrential rain also hit
\nalmost every part of the city, reaching a depth of eight meters
\nin Ciracas, East Jakarta, six meters in Pancoran and four meters
\nin Bintaro, both of which are in South Jakarta.<\/p>\n
On Saturday afternoon, data from the morgue of the Cipto
\nMangunkusumo Hospital showed that six people had died due to
\nelectrocution, and three teenagers were swept away by floodwater.
\nOn Friday, 21 people were reported dead and two missing.<\/p>\n
Data from the Meteorology and Geophysics Agency (BMG) showed
\non Saturday that rainfall could still pound the city and its
\nsouthern highlands but would be below the peak level of 250 mm on
\nTuesday.<\/p>\n
\"Today and for the next few days it will very likely be rainy
\nbut with less than the peak of 250 mm,\" a BMG employee, who
\nwished to remain anonymous, told The Jakarta Post.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/floods-finally-touch-untouchable-areas-1447893297",
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