Floods hit Jakarta again, killing one
Floods hit Jakarta again, killing one
JAKARTA (JP): At least one man has been killed since Monday evening, when torrential rains and floods hit several parts of the city.
Police sources said that the victim was identified as Jerry Juwani, a 17-year-old resident of the Perdagangan Housing Complex in Bintaro, South Jakarta.
Jerry, believed to suffer from epilepsy, drowned while playing at a stream near his house at about 4:15 p.m., the sources said.
The floods were not as big as those which hit the city in January and February. However, hundreds of houses in many parts of the capital were inundated. Traffic in many areas was severely congested until late Tuesday evening forcing motorists to seek longer alternative roads to get to the office or home.
The January and February floods claimed at least 30 lives and caused Rp 90 billion in losses.
Hundreds of commuters were stranded yesterday as bus and taxi drivers refused to go through the inundated areas. In some areas, long lines of people were seen walking along the roads to get home from their places of work yesterday evening.
A resident of Jl. Bendi, Bintaro, South Jakarta, said last night that she had to get off the public bus about two kilometers from her home because the bus could not get through the water. She had to walk the rest of the way home.
The floods in the Bintaro and Cipulir, also in South Jakarta, areas caused traffic jams. Vehicles from Ciledug and Bintaro could not pass the bridges in Cipulir market and Tanah Kusir as water levels reached at least 40 centimeters high at these locations.
Police decided to close the streets and detoured traffic from Bintaro to Kebayoran to other alternative routes, leading to more bumper-to-bumper traffic.
A similar scene was found at some areas in North Jakarta when vehicles tried to avoid passing through the inundated roads.
Water levels
Water levels reached between 20 centimeters and 170 centimeters in depth in Pondok Pinang, Pesanggrahan, Bintaro and Ulujami in South Jakarta and Kramat Jati, Halim, Cipinang Melayu, Makassar and Kebon Pala subdistricts in East Jakarta.
The IKPN housing complex, one of more than 90 flood-prone spots in the city, was the worst hit as the water reach about 170 centimeters yesterday afternoon.
The height of Pesanggrahan river reached three meters yesterday, about two meters higher than normal. As a result, the river overflowed and the water inundated the housing complex and its surrounding area.
The housing complex office reported that only a small number of residents were evacuated to safer ground while the rest chose to wait until the water level dropped.
"Since 4.30 p.m. the water level in IKPN housing complex has dropped and it was only 60 centimeters deep. We are sure that it will drop completely if no rain falls tonight," R. Sitindjak, the head of natural disaster department of the office, said.
In the lower level areas of the housing complex the water was still at 200 centimeters at 6 p.m. last night. (bsr/man/yns/sur)