East Java to be hardest hit by storm in mid-January
East Java to be hardest hit by storm in mid-January
Indra Harsaputra, The Jakarta Post, Surabaya
The Surabaya Geophysics and Meteorology Agency (BMG) predicted on
Wednesday that torrential rains and gale-force winds -- which
recently hit several areas in East Java such as Sidoarjo, Kediri,
Magetan, Mojokerto and Tuban -- would again sweep the area in the
middle of January.
The turbulent weather would even spread and hit other areas
outside East Java such as the Central Java capital of Semarang
and West Nusa Tenggara province, said Edi Waluyo, an official at
the Surabaya's BMG.
Edi said that the storm was the effect of West Monsoon wind
and Cyclone Ken. Cyclones occur every 10 years
"In 1994, a similar storm also hit Sidoarjo, Kediri and other
areas in East Java," he told The Jakarta Post at his office on
Wednesday.
A study by a working group at the BMG, of which Edi is the
head, showed that torrential rain and strong winds would occur in
the area until March, with between 50 millimeters to 100 mm of
rain daily or 400 mm to 700 mm per month.
"The rain will be accompanied by strong winds of more than 50
kilometers per hour. The strong winds will raise the height of
waves on the Northern coastal of Java island by 2 meters to 3
meters," he said.
Regencies and municipalities likely to be affected are
Banyuwangi, Trenggalek, South Malang, Pacitan, Tulungagung,
Situbondo, Probolinggo, Pasuruan, Sidoarjo, Gresik, Lamongan,
Tuban, Bojonegoro, Madura, Madiun, Magetan, Ponorogo, Mojokerto,
Jombang, Kediri and Surabaya.
"The heavy rain and gale-force winds will reach their peak
between Jan. 13 and Jan. 15, and they will then spread to
Semarang and the north of West Nusa Tenggara province," he said.
In order to prevent fatalities, Edi has called on local
government officials to warn the public ahead of time.
The BMG office has also called on shipping agents to delay sea
travel in the middle of January, particularly those ships
cruising along the Northern coast of Java.
The officials should not take the weather forecast lightly, he
said. "Actually, we had warned officials in the East Java
administration through a circular dated Dec. 6. about the recent
storm in Sidoarjo that killed one person and damaged over 50
houses. But, unfortunately, the officials apparently had not
informed local residents in time," he said.
Meanwhile, Surabaya and other cities in East Java, such as
Gresik, Mojokerto, Jombang, Kediri, Nganjuk, Sidoarjo and Malang
have seen heavy cloud cover since Monday.
Rain has fallen in Surabaya, the capital of East Java, since
Monday, causing flooding in several areas of the city.
Water has inundated, for example, H.R. Mohammad, Rungkut and
Dharmawangsa areas here, with floodwater reaching a height of
between 50 centimeters to 1 meter.