Flood, landslides damage 187 houses in C. Java

Several residents of Cikadu village, Pemalang regency in Central Java gape at what was once a home after heavy rain and landslides wreaked havoc in the area late on Wednesday.

The natural disaster severely damaged 187 houses and four mosques in the area.

No fatalities were reported in the incident but some 760 locals had taken refuge in safer areas of the district, including an elementary school.

Villagers fled when they were alerted to the danger as the storm hit the fractured soil which had become susceptible to landslides after the prolonged dry season.

Yoyo, a staffer at the Pemalang administration, said that the administration could only afford basic living expenses for the refugees for one to two weeks.

The losses due to the disaster have been estimated at Rp 3.2 billion (US$350,000).

The Central Java provincial government has vowed to allocate Rp 866.4 billion (US$ 96 million) in the 2003 budget to handle natural disasters in the province. --JP