8 Areas in Southeast Sulawesi Flooded, 8,616 People Affected

The Regional Disaster Mitigation Agency (BPBD) has recorded that eight regencies/cities in Southeast Sulawesi are flooded, affecting 8,616 people. “The number of people impacted across Southeast Sulawesi is 8,616. There are eight regencies,” said the Head of BPBD Southeast Sulawesi, Laode Saifuddin, to CNNIndonesia.com on Tuesday (12/5). Saifuddin mentioned that the thousands of residents affected by the floods come from eight regencies/cities across Southeast Sulawesi, which occurred last week. “So, the areas impacted in Southeast Sulawesi include eight regencies. First is Kendari City, then Konawe, then North Konawe, Konawe Islands, then East Kolaka, North Kolaka Regency,” he explained. Saifuddin stated that among the eight areas flooded, two regions have been the most severely affected by the disaster. “The worst is in Kendari City, then in Konawe Regency,” he said. Meanwhile, Saifuddin said that the water levels have receded, especially in Kendari City, after the Wanggu River flooded residents’ settlements. “So, at the moment, alhamdulillah, it hasn’t rained for two days. So, the floodwater, especially in Wanggu, in the Lepo-Lepo Subdistrict which is prone to flooding, has started to decrease in volume. This morning, we saw that the water level had dropped by almost one metre,” he clarified. Saifuddin explained that the provincial to local governments have endeavoured to handle the flood disaster by providing assistance. “Alhamdulillah, the government, both regency/city levels, has handled it. And even this morning, the central government arrived, namely the Minister of Agriculture, who also provided assistance to 17 regencies/cities in the form of basic foodstuffs, consisting of rice, oil, and the like,” he said. “Up to now, there are no casualties, none. That’s about it,” Saifuddin added.