Boats float when floods bloat

Boats float when floods bloat

Jon Afrizal, The Jakarta Post/Jambi

Siti, not yet five years old, looked at her grandmother, Ibu
Nanang, 60, hoping she would be allowed to play in a small
rowboat tied up to their stilt house.

Although many of her toddler friends were playing on their
boats that afternoon, her grandmother said no, and Siti's face
fell.

The floodwaters could rise during high tide on the river in
the morning and afternoon, and it would be dangerous for her,
Nyai told The Jakarta Post.

Nyai and the 200 other families of Pandan Island area in Legok
subdistrict, Telanaipura district, about one kilometer from the
Batanghari River, all own rowboats.

Each boat, measuring five meters by 75 centimeters, is secured
with a padlock to prevent theft, because at a price of up to Rp
300,000 (US$35), they are a family asset.

The boats are usually stored on the crossbeams under the
houses.

The floods usually come during these two months, and can rise
to a point 75 cm high on the two-meter stilts. In some places,
flood levels may even reach a meter high.

"We can only use our rowboats during the rainy season, when we
would be confined to our houses without a boat," said Nyai.

During the floods, motorcycles and bicycles cannot be parked
by the front steps, so they are parked at the homes of relatives
not affected by the floods, or at private parking lots for Rp
3,000 a night.

Boat taxis, which spring up during the floods, charge Rp 1,000
to ferry people home from the parking lots, and children take
them to go to and from school. Many residents switch to providing
the service when the rains come, working from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.
and earning up to Rp 30,000 daily.

Boats are also needed to go shopping for groceries at Angsoduo
Market, which cannot be reached on foot when the river swells. It
takes 15 minutes to reach the market by boat. During the dry
season, vegetable vendors usually make their rounds in the
village with their carts.

Most importantly, the boats are used to fetch water from the
river for cooking and drinking. As for bathing, laundering and
washing dishes, villagers make do with the water underneath their
houses.

Usman, 40, said only water from the Batanghari River could be
used for consumption. Other water sources in the area are not
potable because they are contaminated with garbage, and have a
dark color and smell bad.

"Getting clean water is difficult here. Not all of us can
afford water from the water company," he said.