600 People Evacuated as River Embankment Breaches: Several Villages in 3 Districts in Demak Flooded
The Tuntang River embankment breached at three points in Trimulyo and Sidorejo villages, Guntur district, Demak Regency, on Friday (3/4), causing floods to inundate residents’ settlements and forcing hundreds of families to evacuate to other villages for shelter.
Media Indonesia observations until Friday (3/4) evening showed floodwaters 0.8 to 1.5 metres high still submerging Trimulyo and Sidorejo villages in Guntur district, Demak Regency, due to the embankment breach along 10-50 metre stretches. This not only flooded village roads and farmland but also inundated hundreds of residents’ homes in both villages.
Due to the flooding that struck since midday, hundreds of families were forced to evacuate to safe locations, even staying at shelters in neighbouring villages for safety as floodwaters inside homes reached 1 metre. “We were taken out using rubber boats,” said Sarifah, an evacuee.
Suhardi, another resident, reported similar experiences, stating the flood occurred after heavy rain lashed upstream areas such as Semarang Regency, causing the Tuntang River’s volume to rise dramatically. The embankment could not withstand the water pressure and breached.
Head of the Demak Regional Disaster Management Agency (BPBD), Agus Sukiyono, said the breach at three points—two in Trimulyo village and one in Sidorejo village—resulted in several villages in three districts, namely Guntur, Karangtengah, and Wonosalam, being flooded with water levels up to 1.5 metres.
“About 150 families or 600 people have been evacuated and sheltered in safer villages,” said Agus Sukiyono on Friday (3/4).
As of evening, the water had not receded, Sukiyono explained, because the breached embankment could not yet be repaired given the high and fast-flowing volume of the Tuntang River into residential areas. “We, along with an integrated team including police, TNI, Social Affairs Office, PMI, and volunteers, are continuously working on handling the situation,” he added.
Head of Operations at Demak Police Resort, Kompol Wasito, said initial flood disaster handling in several Demak villages focused on residents’ safety through evacuations, particularly for the elderly, children, and women.
“We immediately moved to evacuate residents to safe places because their homes were flooded over 1.5 metres,” Wasito said.
In addition to evacuating to temporary shelters, Wasito continued, a joint team from various government agencies also set up a communal kitchen to ensure logistical needs for the hundreds of people still sheltering.