Beware of Extreme Weather in 20 Areas of Central Java, Demak Floods Begin to Recede
The Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) has issued an early warning regarding the potential for extreme weather looming over Central Java on Monday (6/4). As many as 20 regions are predicted to be lashed by rain of moderate to heavy intensity, accompanied by strong winds and lightning strikes.
BMKG forecaster at Ahmad Yani Meteorological Station in Semarang, Harits Syahid, explained that morning weather conditions are generally cloudy with light rain in the northern coastal areas. However, entering the afternoon to early evening, rain intensity is expected to increase evenly.
“The potential for moderate to heavy rain is spread across mountainous areas, highlands, central Central Java, Solo Raya, and parts of the northern coast. We urge residents to be wary of hydrometeorological disasters such as landslides, floods, and tornadoes,” said Harits.
The following is a detailed list of regions in Central Java predicted to experience moderate to heavy rain based on BMKG data: [Note: Specific list not provided in the original article.]
In addition to rainfall, BMKG notes winds blowing from the northeast to southeast at speeds of 5-30 km/h. Air temperatures range from 18-32 degrees Celsius with humidity reaching 60-95 percent. Meanwhile, wave conditions in the northern and southern waters of Central Java are observed to be subsiding (0.5-1.25 meters), although the threat of tidal floods is predicted to re-emerge on Wednesday (8/4).
On the other hand, good news comes from Demak Regency. Based on monitoring on Monday (6/4), the flood that submerged 8 villages in 4 sub-districts is beginning to show a downward trend. This occurred after residents and joint teams carried out emergency patching on the breached river embankment.
Head of the Demak BPBD, Agus Sukiyono, stated that water levels, which previously reached 1.5 meters, have now receded to about 0.5 meters. “Residents, assisted by joint teams, carried out manual patching to reduce water flow into settlements. Some evacuees have started returning home,” he explained.
Although the water is starting to recede, new challenges have emerged in the form of piles of rubbish and thick mud. Romdonah (50), a resident of Guntur, said she needs several days to clean her house. “We’ve been doing community work since morning, but because it’s manual with simple tools, cleaning this 50 cm thick mud is quite heavy,” she concluded.
As many as 1,230 houses were flooded, affecting 1,070 families (4,280 people) due to the breaching of the Tuntang River embankment in Demak Regency.
As many as 2,839 people are still holding out in evacuation centres due to flooding up to 1.5 meters high that hit several sub-districts in Demak Regency.
Preliminary BNPB data: flooding due to the breaching of the Tuntang River embankment in Demak killed one person and forced thousands of residents to evacuate.
The National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB) reported that the number of residents affected by flooding in Demak Regency, Central Java, continues to increase.
Until Friday night (3/4), floods 0.8 - 1.5 meters high still inundated Trimulyo and Sidorejo Villages, Guntur Sub-district, Demak Regency, due to the breaching of the Tuntang River embankment.