Jakarta to experience tumultuous weather

Jakarta to experience tumultuous weather

Evi Mariani, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

People might be able to breathe a great sigh of relief as last
week did not see significant floods as feared by many, but this
does not mean that they could be entirely relieved as the city
could still be deluged by flood waters in the near future.

Jakarta, as well as several areas in Java, Bali, Nusa Tenggara
and southern Kalimantan, Sumatra and Sulawesi, may experience
fluctuating weather for the next two months, according to
Meteorological and Geophysics Agency (BMG).

The agency earlier predicted that Jakarta would get three days
or torrential rain last week, resulting in the inundation of the
flood-prone areas.

Instead of raining, most days of the week were extremely hot
and sunny here, except for Monday's heavy rain.

Achmad Zakir, chief of weather forecast division at the BMG
explained that the extreme weather had affected the weather
forecast.

"I forecasted on Jan. 3 that Jakarta might experience three
consecutive days of heavy rains. But on Jan. 5, above the South
China sea, there were unexpected clouds that blocked the air mass
that should have brought rains to Java."

Because of this unexpected occurrence, the weather would be
fluctuating, so the BMG will carefully watch these developments.

But he still warns Jakarta residents to be aware of floods
because the peak of this rainy season will come sooner or later
in January or February.

Hadi Widiatmoko, a staff member of the weather forecasting
division, added that the warming of the sea surface in the middle
and eastern parts of the Pacific Ocean caused a distortion to the
normal weather pattern. The warming, which does not normally
happen, will eventually cool down, but it will take about two
months.

The warming also distorts the cloud distribution pattern. Last
weeks's scorching heat in Jakarta happened because the humidity
in Jakarta was low and the clouds were thin, so the heat of the
sun was unobstructed.

Heavy rains still are on the horizon for Jakarta and the other
areas, although the rain will be inconsistent. For example, after
a week of extreme heat, Jakarta and other areas may experience at
least two consecutive days of heavy rain before suffering
scorching heat again, according to Hadi.

As a consequence of the fluctuating weather, the forecasts
have to be updated daily. "If the weather is stable, like the
weather in Central Kalimantan, we can forecast the weather trend
for the next several days. However, since the pattern is
distorted by the warming, we have to watch for the changes in the
weather more frequently," he said.

Hadi added that floods may occur in Jakarta later this month
and in February, although probably not as severe as last year's.

"Jakartans do not have to be panic, but still have to be aware
of a possibility of floods."