Dengkeng River Floods, Forcing Hundreds of Cawas Residents in Klaten to Evacuate

Heavy rainfall, ranging from moderate to heavy, that has drenched Klaten Regency in Central Java since Tuesday afternoon caused the Dengkeng River to overflow, inundating residential areas in 16 villages across five sub-districts. The hardest-hit communities lie along the river’s floodplain, with the most severe impact reported in Desa Cawas, where 120 residents were forced to leave their homes on Tuesday night as floodwaters rose. Evacuees are currently spread across several evacuation points.

The flooding was aggravated by breaches in embankments at Desa Bawak and Desa Japanan. The rupture at Desa Bawak caused the Cawas Market to be submerged, leading to a full closure of a major road in the area. Traffic heading toward Gunungkidul was diverted via the eastern ring road of Desa Cawas, with heavy security provided by volunteers and police.

Indiarto, a member of the Rapid Response Team (TRC) of Klaten BPBD, explained that floodwaters began entering homes in Dukuh Posakan, Desa Cawas on Tuesday night around 23:00 WIB. ‘The Dengkeng flood began inundating the Dukuh Posakan settlement around 23:00 on Tuesday (3/3). Water started to enter houses and residents fled that night,’ he said. Wahyu Prasetyo, a resident of Dukuh Posakan, admitted that this flood was the first time water had reached his home, about 5 cm deep. ‘The floodwater also entered my house last night, around 5 cm deep. It is the first time the area has flooded. Fortunately the water receded quickly and the house can be cleaned,’ he added.

In response, Klaten Regent Hamenang Wajar Ismoyo visited the BPBD Tactical Post and the community kitchen at the Desa Cawas village hall to assess the situation. He stated that he has coordinated with the Indonesian Army (TNI), BPBD and BBWS Bengawan Solo to plan recovery measures. Regarding the breached embankment, the local government will involve private sector partners to accelerate repairs. ‘To repair the breached embankment, we will request sand mining partners to gather sand deposits. Once the sand is collected, the breach will be repaired. We hope that the weather will be supportive over the next 2-3 days and that there is no further rainfall,’ he said.

As of this report, joint teams remained on standby at the affected sites to anticipate further flooding given the ongoing risk of extreme weather. (JS/P-2)