Flood sweeps through two regencies in Riau

Haidir Anwar Tanjung, The Jakarta Post, Pekanbaru, Riau

The sporadic flooding in Riau over the last several weeks has begun to sweep through Indragiri Hulu and Pelalawan, two large regencies in the province, displacing more than 20,000 people and paralyzing a section of the East Trans-Sumatra Highway.

Refugees in Indragiri Hulu increased from 130 families to 523 families as of Wednesday; in Pelalawan, the earlier figure of 50 families on Monday went up to 339 families on Wednesday according to official figures.

Two elementary schools with around 350 students in Indragiri Hulu are still closed since the earlier Jan. 7 flood. "We are looking for a temporary place for them to study," Marjohan Yusuf, the regency secretary, said.

The regency's head of the Social Welfare Agency, Syahril MR said in Rengat, the regency's capital, that the flooding in the last two weeks was worse than the flooding from Dec. 22 to Jan. 7.

"The latest estimate is that (the floods have affected) 13,113 people in 72 subdistricts and five districts. 2,135 homes have been lost in the floods and around 523 families have sought shelter in Rengat," Syahril said.

Alfitra, the public relations officer for Indragiri Hulu, said so far around 1,888 hectares of farmland, including rubber and palm oil plantations, were destroyed. More than 40 fish ponds were also inundated and ruined when the Indragiri river overflowed. Alfitra added that a 50-meter bridge and 250 irrigation structures were also destroyed apart from damage of 2,700 meters of road.

In Pelalawan regency, the Kampar river overflowed again and forced residents of Pangkalan Kerinci district to flee in terror.

The regency's public relations officer Darwis Al Kadam said the level of water was increasing in 15 subdistricts and five districts -- Lannggam, Pangkalan Kerinci, Kerumutan, Taluk Maranti and Pelalawan. Areas where water had reached one-meter high were in the districts of Langgam and Pangkalan Kerinci, the regency's capital.

In Pelalawan, three kilometers of the road to the east have been disrupted in the area of Pangkalan Kerinci or 72 kilometers from Pekanbaru. Traffic to Rengat must now pass the central part through the Kuantan Singingi regency meaning a 10-hour journey instead of five hours.

Darwis said that hundreds of trucks carrying timber heading for the paper mills of PT Riau Andalan Pulp and Paper could not reach their destination, likewise for other vehicles on the same route. Given the rainfall, many other roads are predicted to be impassable through next week.

Last Saturday four people, including three children, drowned in the area. They were Ahmad, 5, Siti Aisyah bin Kisman, 6, from Redang village in Rengat Barat district; Franki, 10, of Sungai Kuantan village in Peranap district and Raja Amran, 53 of the Pasir Kemilau village in Rengat district.

Earlier this month, a herd of wild elephants ran amok and damaged hundreds of hectares of farmland and palm oil plantations after they were angered over the inundation of their habitat.

The project officer of the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) in the regency, Yuyu Arian, told The Jakarta Post that the floods were caused by the destruction of the water catchment areas in the forests.

"That is why the two areas are now prone to heavy flooding. The impact would have been minimal if the forests weren't illegally cut down. Local officials continue to issue illegal concessions to timber companies without any concern for the environmental impact," he said.

He demanded local officials to stop issuing exploitation licenses to protect the fragile ecosystem in the area.