Heavy Rain and Strong Winds in Bandung City Topple Trees and Billboards
Heavy rain accompanied by strong winds that struck parts of Bandung City on Saturday (29/3) had widespread impacts, causing six trees to fall and two billboards to collapse.
The Bandung City Regional Disaster Management Agency (BPBD) recorded that the fallen trees occurred on Jalan Guntursari Wetan, Jalan Buah Batu in Turangga Ward, Jalan Lodaya, Jalan Buah Batu in Batununggal Ward, Jalan Soekarno Hatta, and Jalan Selontongan.
Meanwhile, the two collapsed billboards occurred on Jalan Buah Batu in Turangga Ward. Fortunately, all the incidents triggered by the heavy rain and strong winds did not result in any fatalities or injuries.
“This incident was triggered by extreme weather conditions in the form of heavy rain accompanied by strong winds,” stated the Head of Prevention and Preparedness Division of Bandung City BPBD, Amires Pahala, on Sunday (29/3).
According to Amires, based on data collected by Bandung City BPBD up to 14:30 WIB, all incidents of fallen trees and collapsed billboards have been handled by the relevant agencies. “Handling has been carried out by the relevant technical services, including the Fire and Rescue Department, the Housing and Settlement Area Office (DPKP), and the Municipal Civil Service Police Unit,” he said.
Amires mentioned that, in general, these incidents temporarily disrupted road access and posed potential hazards in the surrounding areas, but no fatalities or injuries were reported in these events. In response, the public is urged to increase vigilance against the potential for extreme weather and to avoid sheltering under large trees or near billboard structures during heavy rain and strong winds. Immediately report emergency incidents via the Bandung City call centre at 112 or 113.
Previously, the Head of the Bandung City Emergency Services Unit, Soni Bakhtiyar, explained that all reports of collapsed billboards received through the 113 emergency service were immediately followed up with a rapid response from field officers. “Our average response time is around 7 minutes, while the action time for handling on site is about 1 hour,” he stated.
In addition to handling collapsed billboards, his team conducted evacuations of fallen trees on Jalan Buah Batu in front of Almaz and on Jalan Guntursari Wetan in Turangga Ward, Lengkong Subdistrict, Bandung City. “For the fallen trees, there are two points in Lengkong Subdistrict, namely in Turangga Ward and Guntursari Wetan Ward. All have been fully handled,” he added.