BMG warns of floods and landslides

Muninggar Sri Saraswati, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The Meteorology and Geophysics Agency (BMG) has warned of possible floods and landslides in the rainy season that is expected to start in October.

"Let's not forget about landslides and floods as we have been focusing more on how to overcome the current drought," BMG forecast division head Ahmad Zakir said in Jakarta on Tuesday.

Flash floods and landslides are expected to hit provinces south of the equator, most of which are now suffering from drought.

The equator runs from west to east, crossing Sumatra just north of the town of Payakumbuh, to Pontianak in Kalimantan and on to a point just to the north of Manokwari, Papua.

Java, Bali, the Nusa Tenggara islands and parts of Sumatra, Kalimantan, Sulawesi and Papua all lie to the south of the equator.

"The rainy season will start first in the western part of West Java in October or early November," he said.

The dry season normally runs from April to October, while the rainy season is from November to March.

Western and southern parts of West Java, western parts of Central Java, southern parts of East Java, the Nusa Tenggara islands, western and southern parts of South Sulawesi and South Sulawesi will get more rainfall than other areas, or more than 400 millimeters.

As most of the provinces are among the areas hardest hit by the drought, combined with the fact the provinces have insufficient forests as water catchment areas, it is predicted that those areas are prone to floods and landslides.

"Local administrations must be cautious over the issue. Residents deserve to get early warnings so they can be prepared prior to the floods," Zakir said.

Early this year, local administrations failed to act to lessen the impact of floods and landslides in parts of the country despite repeated warnings from as early as November last year from the BMG, the State Ministry for the Environment and other institutions.

Dozens of people died.

While local administrations continue their reforestation programs, Zakir advised them to make comprehensive plans on how to anticipate floods and landslides in a bid to prevent further loss of life and property.

"Do not wait until the rainy season comes as extreme natural phenomenon may happen anytime."

Zakir also urged people to be cautious over possible floods and landslides in their areas and asked them to get accurate weather information from BMG offices across the country.