Flood kills 8, injures 13

JAKARTA (JP): Eight people died and 13 were injured when a flash flood hit a gold mining area in Bengkulu province, on the western island of Sumatra, Antara reported Friday.

Villagers of Ketenong Satu discovered the bodies of seven gold panners and one of their children on Wednesday and the body of of another small child the next day beside a swollen river, the news agency reported.

The local administrative chief, Muslihan, said the flash flood followed a landslide in the province's Kerinci Seblat National Park. The landslide covered about two hectares of the park.

Equipment including a diesel-powered gold sifter were washed away in the flood. Total damages have yet to be estimated.

The province's deputy governor and the local administrator visited the site and offered food aid to the surviving families.

Separately, residents in the East Kalimantan provincial capital of Samarinda fought floods on New Year's Eve, fearful there would be a repetition of last August's devastating inundation when levels reached two meters.

On Thursday, Antara quoted the head of the Environmental Impact Management Agency, Awang Farouk Ishak, as saying the administration urgently needed a flood control office because water had reached 1.5 meters in some areas.

He said heavier rains could cause the Karangmumus River to overflow, and Benanga Dam, located 15 kilometers to the north of Samarinda, to burst.

Awang believes the development of Samarinda, in which water catchment areas were converted into business and residential sites, contributed significantly to the floods.

Road construction was not followed by drainage widening, he said.

In August, four died and 50,000 were forced to evacuate their homes when Benanga Dam in Lempake village burst.