Floods inundate towns, harvest failure looms

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Floods triggered by torrential rain plagued several towns in Java and Sumatra islands on Monday, forcing thousands of residents to flee to safer areas and submerging thousands of hectares of plantations and crops ready for harvest.

There were no fatalities reported.

The deluge flooded around one third of the southern areas in the West Java city of Bandung after almost daily downpours over the past week.

Initially, the foods hit subdistricts Banjaran, Dayeuhkolot and Solokan Jeruk, but later spread to other neighboring areas due to the persistent heavy rains last week.

Data from the Bandung-based Natural Disaster Prevention Task Force showed on Sunday that hundreds of hectares of residential and farming areas were affected by the floods.

By late Monday, waters in some areas in Ciparay and Majalaya subdistricts had subsided significantly, however.

More than 7,000 houses were under water with most residents forced to seek shelter in mosques, village halls and nearby schools.

Beben Surbekti, head of the local task force, said water levels reached up to 150 centimeters deep, adding that the areas worst hit by the floods included the subdistricts of Bojongsoang, Rancaekek, Solokan Jeruk and Balelendah.

At Parunghalang village in Andir and Padamukti village in Solokan Jeruk, floodwaters almost covered the roofs of houses there.

In Tegal Luar subdistrict, at least 355 hectares of farm lands ready for harvest were also submerged as a result of the collapse of six embankments in the Cinambor canal.

The roof of the Masa Bakti elementary school in Majalaya was destroyed, forcing teachers to send their students home.

Local residents blamed the flooding, an annual problem in the wet season, due to the widening of the Citarum river, as nearby residents had easier access to the river to dump their garbage.

Beben admitted that since the river was enlarged six years ago, floods have become common as the river was no longer able to accommodate waters from surrounding minor rivers.

Arwin Sabar, a hydrology expert with Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB), said floods would continue to plague Bandung in the future until the local administration created protected forests as water catchment areas.

"Since the 1980s, I predicted floods would hit Bandung because of the imbalance between the progressing flow of water and existing hydrology facilities," he said. "I am fed up of reminding the government because they have never listened to me."

Rains also flooded 4,000 homes and hundreds of hectares of plantations and farm land in the East Java town of Bojonegoro.

Residents in at least 130 villages in 13 subdistricts fled to other areas for safety.

In Surabaya, floods again cut off the main northern coastal roads between Pasuruan and Probolinggo towns on Monday. All vehicles had to take alternative routes to get to their destinations.

"In the morning the roads were normal. But by afternoon, traffic had reached a standstill again due to further flooding," Pasuruan District Police chief Adj. Comr. Wakin told Antara.

The floods hit areas about 2.5 kilometers from Gempol toll road in Surabaya with water levels measuring up to 50 centimeters deep.

The main road between Surabaya and Banyuwangi was also badly flooded, causing severe traffic jams for one kilometer of the road.

Wakin said the floods followed heavy rains at East Java's Bromo Mount in Probolinggo, which has in recent years been unable to absorb much water during the rainy season. Sea levels have also risen.

In the town of Bengkulu on Sumatra island, floodwaters were around 1.5 meters deep following three days of heavy rain.

Hundreds of houses in dozens of villages in at least three subdistricts were inundated after the city's Muara Bangkahulu river overflowed.

Tanjung Jaya village in Teluk Segara subdistrict was the worst hit by the flood with thousands of villagers made homeless and forced to take refuge at schools, mosques and other accommodation centers.

A. Chamid, head of the Bengkulu social welfare office, was quoted by Antara as saying the local administration was setting up tents and providing food for the victims.

Hundreds of hectares of farm areas in South Bengkulu regency were also flooded as the Manna river burst its banks, killing dozens of cattle.

Waters flooded the streets leading to and from southern Sumatra in Talo subdistrict some 100 kilometers south of the city of Bengkulu.