14 Regencies in East Java Declare Drought Emergency, BPBD Distributes 1 Million Litres of Clean Water

As many as 14 regencies in East Java have declared drought emergency status as of mid-July 2026. Of these, 11 are on alert standby status and three are on full emergency response status.

Head of the Emergency and Logistics Division at the East Java BPBD, Satriyo Nurseno, said the affected regencies had reported to the provincial BPBD for coordination of the response.

The data received was then mapped by BPBD East Java, which determined drought emergency status for Bondowoso, Lamongan, Banyuwangi, Lumajang, Bangkalan, Blitar, Pasuruan, Trenggalek, Gresik, Malang, Jember, Sampang, Mojokerto and Situbondo.

Of these areas, Lumajang, Mojokerto and Situbondo have raised their status to full emergency response, whilst the others remain on alert standby.

“Steps have been taken to deal with the drought by scaling up the distribution of clean water and mitigation measures so that the impact of the drought does not spread,” he said.

Regarding water distribution efforts, BPBD East Java and relevant stakeholders have channelled approximately 1,035,000 litres of clean water to affected areas through 207 tanker lorry runs, reaching 42 districts, 56 villages and 73 hamlets.

“We continue to carry out clean water drops according to needs on the ground. We are also continuing to coordinate with regency and city BPBDs so that the response can be carried out more quickly and on target,” said Satriyo when contacted on Monday (20 July 2026).

Meanwhile, to face the peak of the dry season, BPBD East Java has budgeted Rp612 million for an estimated 867 runs of clean water distribution.

“We have also prepared 50 water storage tanks, 100 foldable tanks and 9,600 sheets of tarpaulin for logistical readiness,” he said.

Satriyo added that BPBD East Java is also preparing mitigation measures by holding technical coordination meetings with regional apparatus organisations (OPD) and regency and city BPBDs.

BPBD East Java is also ensuring the readiness of its fleet and supporting equipment, ranging from water tanker lorries, logistics vehicles, high-capacity water pumps to emergency lighting equipment, in order to accelerate drought response.

“This is also for drought response as well as to anticipate the potential for forest and land fires (karhutla) during the dry season,” he explained.