671 Hectares of Rice Fields in Demak Affected by Flooding

An area of 671 hectares of rice fields in Demak Regency, Central Java, has been flooded due to high rainfall triggering river overflows and breaches in embankments at several points. “The height of the flood inundation in the rice field areas varies,” said the Head of the Demak Regency BPBD Executive, Agus Sukiyono, in Demak on Sunday (5/4). The impact of the flooding is not limited to the agricultural sector. As many as 2,116 residents’ homes have been affected, along with 29 places of worship and 18 schools that have also been inundated. Preliminary data up to Saturday (4/4) recorded that 2,839 residents had to evacuate due to the disaster. Meanwhile, the Head of the Demak Regency Agriculture and Food Service, Agus Herawan, stated that the flooded rice fields are spread across several villages, with the worst conditions in Trimulyo Village and Sidoharjo Village. However, he said, the most severe impact occurred in Trimulyo Village and Sidoharjo Village, with the area of land in both villages reaching 660 hectares. He explained that the age of the affected rice plants averages around 30 days. This condition means that the potential losses for farmers will not be too great even if there is a crop failure. For rice plants that are inundated, the age ranges from 30 days, so even if there is a failure, the farmers’ losses will not be too significant because they have not yet been planted extensively. “Later, when there is a failure, we will still record it to propose assistance from the central government,” he said. He added that previously, land that experienced crop failure due to flooding had also been proposed for assistance in the form of rice seeds to support replanting. This flooding incident was triggered by breaches in the embankment and the overflow of Tuntang River water on Friday morning (3/4), which then inundated settlements, public facilities, and agricultural land. The breached embankments were recorded at several points, namely in Trimulyo Village with three locations of about 30 metres and 10 metres, as well as in Sidoharjo Village with three locations of about 15 metres.