Flooding spreads in Indramayu homes regency

Nana Rukmana, The Jakarta Post, Indramayu, West Java

Torrential rains that have pounded Indramayu regency since last week have caused massive floods in the area, inundating at least 10,000 hectares of paddy fields and at least 1,400 homes, mainly in Kandanghaur district.

Various sources at the Indramayu administration said that the flooded paddy fields were scattered across 62 villages in 14 districts.

The regency is comprised of 28 districts.

The head of the Indramayu agriculture office, Kusnomo Tamkani, estimated that farmers had lost about Rp 1.7 billion (US$200,000) to the floods.

He added that most of affected paddy fields were located near the coast.

"Of the 14 districts affected by the floods, the most badly hit was Kandanghaur district. The floods washed over 4,093 hectares of the 6,215 hectares that had been planted," he said on Wednesday.

The rice farmers must replant their crops, as floodwaters had submerged and destroyed the two-month-old plants.

Kusnomo assured farmers that the government would immediately distribute seedlings for replanting, after the floodwaters had subsided.

Separately, regent Irianto M.S. Syafiuddin said the Indramayu Natural Disaster and Refugee Management Task Force had proposed a Rp 500 million aid package to the regental council to help residents back on their feet.

Aside from destroying thousands of hectares of crops, the floods reportedly submerged 12 of 13 villages in Kandanghaur district.

A Kandanghaur Public Order officer, Maruto, said some 1,400 houses were submerged in water 30 to 150 centimeters deep.

"A dike in Bojong River in Karanganyar and Kandanghaur districts broke open in a 30-meter-long gash, and a deluge of water from the river gushed into rice paddies and surrounding homes," he said.

Separately, head of neighboring Sukra district Yayat Mulyanto said four of the 14 subdistricts in his area had been flooded out from heavy rains since last Monday.