Bureau says wet dry season possible

Bureau says wet dry season possible

JAKARTA (JP): The national weather bureau says that rain,
which has been drenching many parts of Indonesia this past week,
may continue all through to August and beyond, raising the
prospect of a "wet summer".

Paulus Agus Winarso, of the Meteorology Forecast and Services
at the Meteorology and Geophysics Agency, said yesterday that the
rain this past week had been caused by slight deviations in the
normal air pressure patterns in the region.

He said the pressure in the northern part of the globe has
been above normal while pressure in the south below normal.

"The end result is that we've been getting more rain this
month. Usually, we're getting less at this time of the year," he
told Antara.

The heavy downpour in Jakarta on Saturday took many people by
surprise, causing floods in some parts and creating massive
traffic jams as many roads were underwater.

Paulus did not rule out the possibility that this pattern will
continue into the next rainy season, which usually begins in
November. "This is almost similar to the situation we had in
1992, when we were getting plenty of rain during the dry season."

Paulus said that rain had been falling in Jakarta, many parts
of Sumatra, West Java and Sulawesi. Even Nusa Tenggara, which is
normally dry, has been getting some rain lately.

"However the Meteorology and Geophysics Agency cannot predict
yet whether this is going to be a `wet summer'," he said, adding
that conditions could still change.

He said people should be prepared for sudden changes in the
weather.

He explained that Indonesia is not the only country
experiencing freak weather conditions, pointing out the recent
heat wave in India, the floods in Australia and New Zealand, and
the tropical storms in the Philippines.

The current wet conditions contrast with that of last year
when Indonesia experienced one of its longest and most severe dry
spells. (emb)