Gibran chairs Tuban flood coordination meeting, emphasises accelerated recovery
Jakarta (ANTARA) – Vice President (Wapres) Gibran Rakabuming Raka emphasised the importance of accelerating the handling of flood impacts in Tuban Regency, East Java Province, in restoring public facilities up to the basic needs of the community. The instruction was delivered as the Vice President chaired a flood-management coordination meeting with local governments and stakeholders at the offices of PT Semen Indonesia (Persero) Tbk on Friday.
“Public facilities affected, such as schools and places of worship, must be turned back on and made functional as soon as possible,” said Vice President Gibran, via the Secretariat of the Vice President in Jakarta.
In his address, the Vice President underscored the importance of accelerating the response to flood impacts still being felt by the community. He stated that although there were no fatalities, the material losses suffered by residents still require serious government attention.
The Vice President also directed that the recovery should target the Ngino–Sambongrejo connecting road, which was damaged by the flood. He called for the repairs to be carried out promptly, including improvements to the drainage system around the road.
“The Ngino–Sambongrejo connecting road that is damaged should be repaired promptly, including the drainage system around the road so as not to disrupt residents’ activities and logistics distribution,” he said.
The Vice President also stressed the importance of speeding up the data collection on damaged homes so that aid can be disbursed to the community.
“Data on damaged homes should be completed promptly, aid disbursed, and assistance provided for cleaning-up processes,” he said.
Furthermore, the Vice President reminded regional governments to anticipate potential post-flood disease outbreaks.
He said preventive measures must be taken seriously given that extreme weather conditions remain a potential risk.
“Anticipate the possible spread of post-flood diseases such as diarrhoea, dysentery, hepatitis, and dengue fever,” he said.
Referring to data from the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG), the Vice President also reminded that the potential for extreme weather could persist until the end of March, so local governments should stay on alert.
“Based on BMKG, we will still face extreme weather until March. Therefore, we must always be ready and vigilant,” he said.
For the long term, the Vice President emphasised the need for more systematic flood-management actions to prevent floods from recurring in Tuban, including improvements to drainage governance and river normalisation.
“Observe governance and improve the drainage system, carry out regular dredging of rivers that have become silted,” he said.
Also present at the meeting were East Java Governor Khofifah Indar Parawansa, Tuban Regent Aditya Halindra Faridzky, and PT Semen Indonesia (Persero) Tbk President Director Indrieffouny Indra.
Also attending were Acting Secretary to the Vice President Al Muktabar, PT Solusi Bangun Indonesia President Director Rizki Kresno Edhie Hambali, PT Semen Indonesia (Persero) Tbk EVP GHoPo Muhammad Supriyadi, a representative of the East Java provincial Disaster Management Agency, Head of Brantas River Basin Authority Muhammad Noor, Head of East Java–Bali National Roads Implementing Agency Javid Hurriyanto, and Head of East Java Regional Housing Infrastructure Agency Denny Kumara.
Flash floods struck several parts of Tuban Regency on Monday (2/3) following heavy, intense rainfall. The floods submerged at least six districts, including Semanding, Plumpang, Merakurak, and Tuban Town, with water depths of more than half a metre.