Jakarta braves biggest flood since independence

Jakarta braves biggest flood since independence

By Johannes Simbolon

JAKARTA (JP): The flood is over, leaving mud, wrecked houses,
and trauma in the minds of victims.

On Wednesday, when the Ciliwung river which rose out of its
banks last Saturday had returned to normal levels, Sobaruddin, a
conductor for the PPD state bus firm, who lives in Kramat Jati
district, East Jakarta stood dejectedly, arms akimbo, in front of
his house.

Although most of the other houses in the area were dry, water
still reached knee-level in Sobaruddin's home.

"Please, print my name in your paper so my superior will know.
I have not been to work since last Thursday because of this
flood," he told The Jakarta Post with tears in his eyes.

Tears are the logical consequence of the disaster which has
deprived the victims of many things, from their "valuable" TV
sets to small amounts of savings, livestock and the lives of
their beloved.

The flood killed six people and caused an estimated loss of
tens of billions of rupiahs in property to the thousands of poor
families who live alongside the Ciliwung River in Kalibata,
Kampung Melayu and Manggarai districts.

The floods also spread to other parts of the city, including
the Tanah Abang area in Central Jakarta, the Slipi and Glodok
areas in the west and the Sunter area in the north.

Rais, 60, a Betawi man, who lives in Bukit Duri subdistrict,
Tebet, South Jakarta, is among those who lost a loved one during
the flood.

He recalled that when the water started to rise to an alarming
height on Saturday, he and his 20-year-old son worked hand in
hand to rescue his wife, Aisah, 50, by carrying her up into the
attic of their home. She had been bedridden with an illness for
about a month.

When the water kept rising, they were forced to carry her out
of the protected space of the attic onto the open rooftop. There,
Aisah had to stay all night long. She died at midday the
following day owing to a lack of food, water and exposure.

"I am a lonely man now. There goes the woman who's taken care
of me throughout her life," said Rais.

Yet his voice was not sad, which is typical of the Betawi
(indigenous Jakartan) people, who can always find humor in
misfortune.

"Flooding is part of our routine of life. But, I had never
seen such a big flood in my life, except once in the Japanese era
(1942-1945). That time, there were only a few houses here. When
the flood came, the area became a sea. There wasn't such a
spectacle of rooftops sticking up as there was three days ago,"
Rais recalled.

Whereas Aisah died after futile rescue efforts, Mamat and Ace,
both ojek (motorbike taxi) drivers in Tanah Abang district, died
in what looked like a suicidal disregard of their own safety.

The youths of the area have the habit of holding diving
competitions in the Banjir Kanal waterway, which branches off the
Ciliwung's branch toward the west, every time the water level
goes up.

Thus, when the flooding started, Mamat, Ace and several of
their friends joyfully dived into the middle of the river. Both
were believed to have become trapped in the mud. Their bodies
resurfaced several hours later.

"It's a new year now, you know. Like human beings, the river
wanted to celebrate New Year's. Thus, it swallowed them. Every
year, the river imbibes in at least one human life," Hasan, a
fellow ojek driver, expressed his animistic views, to the Post.

Some victims are upset that government officials did not warn
them about the flooding hours before, while others insist there
was a warning, which they did not heed, thinking that it would be
a small flood as usual.

"Around midday on Saturday, the subdistrict chief, along with
some policemen, came to our neighborhood to warn us that a big
flood would come. But we thought it would only be slightly bigger
than usual," said Ompong, a resident of Rawa Jati subdistrict,
Pancoran district, South Jakarta.

The residents's misinterpretation of the warning was
understandable because they had never experienced such a big
flood before.

The authorities usually know up to nine hours ahead of time
when the Ciliwung River will rise over its banks in Jakarta.

The level of the river, which originates from a source near
Tugu village, Bogor regency, is first monitored at the Katulampa,
Bogor control station, then at the Depok control station under
the Panus bridge.

It takes three hours for water passing through Katulampa to
reach Depok 32 kilometers away, and another six hours from Depok
to the Manggarai control station, a distance of 35.5 km.

Marsan, the Depok control station watcher, said he had sent
information on each rise in the river's level to the Jati Baru
central flood monitoring office and Manggarai control station
from early Saturday morning.

As usual, these stations passed on the information to all
governmental offices in areas which the Ciliwung River passes
through. These officials then sent warnings to area residents by
all possible means, including by radio, by phone, or by going
door to door.

The flooding reached its peak at 2.30 p.m. in Depok, and
around 10 p.m. in Jakarta.

By that time, most of the residents were on their rooftops
facing cold, hunger, thirst, and the fear that the water would
rise higher to submerge them all.

"We routinely experience floods. But, it was not a flood that
came on Saturday evening, it was a calamity. No one is to blame,"
said Olan Hasibuan, a resident of Pancoran district, as he sadly
gazed at his ruined home.