Flooding displaces 50,000 in Bandung

Flooding displaces 50,000 in Bandung

Yuli Tri Suwarni, The Jakarta Post, Bandung

Two days of heavy rain forced over 50,000 residents in south
Bandung to flee to safety on Monday as their houses were
inundated by floodwaters up to three meters high.

The flood, thought to be the biggest in 10 years in south
Bandung, occurred after the swollen Citarum river began
overflowing its banks on Saturday, combined with heavy rain all
weekend.

Two districts, Baleendah and Dayeuhkolot, were the hardest-
hit, as the flood also swamped schools and major roads.

Bandung's main road, the Dayeuhkolot-Banjaran highway, has
been impassable since Sunday evening, causing a huge traffic jam
for people trying to come to Bandung via the route. Most chose to
detour to the Soreang-Margahayu highway or through Cibaduyut.

Tono, a staff member at the Baleendah district administration
office, estimated that around 2,900 houses in the district's four
villages -- Andir, Baleendah, Rancamanyar and Bojong -- were
affected. He added that 12,300 residents were displaced and had
sought shelter elsewhere.

On Monday, hundreds of residents from Andir were reportedly
holed up inside the Baleendah district office and other offices
in Bandung regency.

"We're still having problems evacuating the refugees and in
accommodating them due to the lack of tents. But today, we'll
build a public kitchen," head of Baleendah district Tery Rusidan
was quoted as saying by Antara on Monday.

He added that some residents were trapped on top of their
roofs, so a rescue team had to pick them up using the limited
number of available boats.

While inspecting the flooded areas on Monday, head of the
education office at Baleendah district, Yayat Hendayana,
estimated that over 2,600 students would be unable to attend
school until the water subsided.

He said his staff had received many phone calls about the
disaster. "Many ask us for help but we can't do much since many
of the areas are hard to reach," Yayat was quoted by Antara as
saying.

A teacher from SD Jati II elementary school, Yetty Nuryati,
said her house was inundated by water two meters high.

"We can't eat anything because all of our food was washed
away," Yetty exclaimed. "We also are having problems finding
potable water."

Antara reported that two flood victims in Baleendah, Aji and
Nani Herawati, were taken to Al Ihsan hospital for treatment.
They nearly drowned and were suffering from severe shock and
hypothermia.

According to the hospital's doctor, Tedi Rasmadi, Aji was
suffering from hypothermia after he tried to get through the
water to save some of his belongings at his house in the Cigado
area.

"Since the water is two meters high and Aji cannot swim, he
had problems," Dr. Tedi succinctly explained to the journalists.

The other victim, Nani, was taken to the hospital after
suffering a seizure at a shelter near the Baleendah subdistrict
office

In Dayeuhkolot district, the worst-hit areas were Dayeuhkolot,
Citereup, Cangkuan Wetan and Pasawahan villages where the
floodwater reached three meters high.

Head of information section at Dayeuhkolot district, Inen,
estimated that around 20,000 families, or around 50,000
residents, had been affected by the floods.

"This is the worst flood in the last 10 years. Really bad,"
Inen told The Jakarta Post on Monday.

Evacuation was difficult due to limited numbers of available
rubber dinghies. On Monday, only five were available.

"We need at least 20 rubber boats," Inen implored. He revealed
that the boats were essential for evacuating the victims since
many were still trapped in or on their houses.

Head of Bandung's meteorology and geophysics agency, Hendri
Subakti, concluded that there had been a lot of rain over the
last three days.

"Since early February, the total amount of precipitation has
reached 300 millimeters, while usually it's about 200 mm," he
disclosed, while predicting that there would be more rain over
the next two days.