Experts warn of more floods and landslides
Experts warn of more floods and landslides
Moch. N. Kurniawan, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Experts say the floods that submerged thousands of houses in the
provinces of Central Java, Lampung, Bengkulu and South Sulawesi,
and the landslides that claimed over 40 lives in those provinces
are just the beginning of the disasters the country may suffer
during the November-March rainy season.
A team of experts from the Meteorology and Geophysics Agency
(BMG) and the National Aeronautical and Space Institute (LAPAN)
said here Monday that 20 provinces were prone to floods, 15 of
which were also vulnerable to landslides.
The experts, who monitored areas across the country using
satellite data, called on regional administrations to follow up
its report to prevent or minimize the disasters.
The 20 flood-prone provinces are: North Sumatra, Riau,
Bengkulu, South Sumatra, West Sumatra, Lampung, Banten, West
Java, Jakarta, Central Java, Yogyakarta, East Java, South
Kalimantan, East Kalimantan, North Sulawesi, Central Sulawesi,
South Sulawesi, Southeast Sulawesi, West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) and
East Nusa Tenggara (NTT).
The 15 regions susceptible to landslides are: Aceh, North
Sumatra, Jambi, Bengkulu, South Sumatra, Banten, West Java,
Central Java, East Java, Bali, South Kalimantan, North Sulawesi,
South Sulawesi, NTB and NTT.
Already, at least three people were killed and 38 houses
destroyed when floods and landslides struck Aralle village in
Polmas district, South Sulawesi, on Sunday.
Last Friday, the bodies of at least 10 victims were found
after landslides swept through Gunung Kemala village, in the
Karya Penggawa subdistrict of West Lampung. Another 50 people
were injured in landslides.
Earlier this month, a mudslide killed at least 26 people in
the Padusan hot springs in the Pacet resort of Mojokerto, East
Java.
"The recent floods and landslides are just the beginning.
There will be more and more natural disasters during this rainy
season," said BMG meteorologist Endro Santoso, who is also a
member of the natural disaster mitigation team at the State
Ministry of Research and Technology.
Jakarta is also prone to flooding, and although the BMG
predicted that Indonesia would experience floods this rainy
season, they will not be as heavy as the flooding early this
year. The BMG will monitor the weather and rainfall in Jakarta
daily.
Erna Sri Adiningsih of LAPAN called on regional
administrations to be alert to possible natural disasters in
their regions.
She also said people must be provided information to detect
and combat disasters stemming from floods and landslides.
The establishment of monitoring posts and instruments to
measure rainfall was also important to help detect the disaster,
she added.
Erna also suggested that regional governments should start
putting together a detailed topographic map of their regions to
help them anticipate natural disasters, as well as develop their
districts.
"We need a map with a scale of at least 1:50,000, a map that
will clearly show an aerial view of a subdistrict," she said.
Some flood-prone areas in Java: Pandeglang, Cirebon,
Pekalongan, Demak, Pati, Kudus, Yogyakarta, Bojonegoro, Tuban,
Lamongan, Gresik, Surabaya.
Areas liable to landslides: most parts of Banten, southern
part of West Java, most parts of Central Java, several locations
in East Java.