Over 4,000 flee floods in Bandung<\/p>\n
Yuli Tri Suwarni, The Jakarta Post, Bandung<\/p>\n
More than 4,000 people fled their homes on Monday as floods hit
\nparts of Bandung regency following three days of heavy rain since
\nSaturday, which caused the Citarum river, one of the biggest in
\nWest Java, to burst its banks.<\/p>\n
The flooding from the Citarum sends a warning of more possible
\nflooding in Jakarta as the river is connected to the main rivers
\nin the capital, including the Cisadane and Ciliwung.<\/p>\n
The flooding affected around 11,000 residents across Bandung
\nas smaller rivers also burst their banks, but only around 4,300
\nof them were evacuated to take shelter in mosques, schools and
\nother buildings in safer areas.<\/p>\n
Almost one-third of the low-lying areas of Bandung and around
\n2,647 houses in several parts of the city's downtown were
\ninundated, said Suwarna Surya, a local senior official involved
\nin the disaster control task force.<\/p>\n
He said the affected areas included Rancaekek, Baleendah,
\nDayeuhkolot, Bojongsoang and Solokan Jeruk, where the floodwaters
\nhad risen to between 50 centimeters and three meters in depth.<\/p>\n
No casualties were reported in the floods.<\/p>\n
Head of the Dayeuhkolot administration, Harry Wahyono, said
\nthat six neighborhoods in his subdistrict were the worst hit
\nareas with floodwaters standing at three meters.<\/p>\n
"Our area is the worst hit by the floods," he told The Jakarta
\nPost.<\/p>\n
Suwarna said the floodwaters continued to rise sharply due to
\nheavy rain on Sunday and Monday.<\/p>\n
He said at least 15 of the flooded subdistricts in Bandung
\nwere vulnerable to annual flooding during the rainy season.<\/p>\n
Aside from inundating houses and farmland, the floods also cut
\nthe roads linking Baleendah with Rancamanyar, and Palasari with
\nSayati.<\/p>\n
Hundreds of public transportation vehicles serving the flooded
\nroutes had to temporarily halt their operations.<\/p>\n
Residents in southern parts of Bandung blamed the floods
\nplaguing the lowlands on extensive deforestation on higher ground
\nin northern parts of the city.<\/p>\n
Suwarna said the regency administration had tried to reduce
\nthe flood danger by dredging the Citarum river in 1990.<\/p>\n
But this had failed to prevent or reduce the flooding, he
\nadded.<\/p>\n
Endang Nana, a local meteorologist, said the high level of
\nrainfall in Bandung and nearby regencies had added to the
\nseverity of the problem.<\/p>\n
He explained that precipitation in these areas could reach 60
\nmillimeters per hour.<\/p>\n
However, Nana said the rains during February had not been as
\nheavy as the rainfall on Christmas Eve last year, which reached a
\nmassive 79.5 millimeters per hour.<\/p>\n
Floods and landslides have hit many cities and towns across
\nthe country since December during this delayed rainy season,
\nleaving dozens of people drowned or buried under mudslides and
\nrockfalls.<\/p>\n
In Bali, a 65-year-old man was found dead after drowning in
\nthe swollen Panes river in Seririt subdistrict, Bulelang regency,
\nlocal police said on Monday.<\/p>\n
I Made Rai had tried to cross the 12-meter-wide river on
\nSaturday but was swept away by the raging torrent. His two
\ncompanions -- Ketut Witana, 45, and Made Toya, 30, -- survived
\nthe accident, Antara reported.<\/p>\n
Rai's body was found floating five kilometers away from the
\nscene by local residents and police officers, who had been
\nsearching for him along the river.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/over-4000-flee-floods-in-bandung-1447893297",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}