Banyumas experiences downpour

Banyumas experiences downpour

BANYUMAS, Central Java: People in Banyumas regency welcomed
the heavy downpour on Monday and early on Tuesday, following a
six-month drought in the southern part of Central Java.

Following the rains farmers went to their farmland to see what
they could do with their land and hoped to get clean water from
their drying wells.

The local office of the Meteorology and Geophysics Agency said
that the rain was not a signal of the long-awaited wet season and
the drought was expected to continue until the end of November,
2002.

The heavy rain has endangered a number of villages located in
the hilly areas in the regency that are prone to landslides.

"We have ordered 200 families in Somagede village in Banyumas
Subdistrict to leave their homes because the village is prone to
landslides," Suyatno, coordinator of the task force for the
handling of natural disasters in the regency, said on Tuesday.

The strong winds and heavy rain also toppled a number of trees
in the village. --JP