Learning to live with floods
Learning to live with floods
Muninggar Sri Saraswati, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The Kapuk Muara subdistrict in North Jakarta is routinely
flooded at least three times a year due to the high tides and
heavy rains. But because residents cannot afford to buy houses in
other flood-free areas, they have no choice but to deal with the
problem as best they can.
"Our neighborhood lies in a flood-prone area since it is
located near the sea and between the Cengkareng drain, and the
Muara Angke river," a resident named Sudirman told The Jakarta
Post on Thursday.
Flooding, which usually comes during the height of sea tide,
can reach one meter. Most of the time, the flood waters from the
sea tide occur over four days or more.
Most residents have learned to adapt, and managed to find ways
of dealing with the flooding.
In front of some houses, piles of sand-filled sacks can be
found. "The residents here deploy the bags to prevent water from
entering their houses," a resident said.
Some residents have built attics in their homes. When the
flood waters come, they store valuables there, often electronics.
"They have been very useful. We continue to put our valuables
and food supplies in the attic," Sudirman said.
The recent floods have hit the area more intensely than usual
for most of the past month.
Some residents were forced to move to higher ground for two
weeks, starting Jan. 28, as the water reached well over one meter
high.
They have returned to their houses, but still must wade
through the dirty, foul-smelling water.
"We have to go back to our normal activity, so we don't mind
the water," said a neighbor, Sukma, who returned to her house,
which had been submerged beneath 30 centimeters of water.
Most of the furniture in Sukma's house, as in many others, are
made of plastic. There now sits a set of plastic sofas in her
living room, and a wooden cabinet. The cabinet legs have been
resourcefully covered with aluminum foil to prevent damage from
flood.
Overall, for this reason, residents tend to prefer plastic-
made furniture because of its immunity from the flood.
"Plastic furniture is not actually what we like, but we have
to be realistic -- it's easy to clean, and the flood can't
destroy it," Sukma said, noting that she has never put a carpet
on her shopping list.
The flooding has brought with it another, less-widely noted
but equally common problem: skin diseases. However, most
residents choose to ignore it.
"If you are a newcomer, you will suffer skin diseases but
after a year or two, it's no longer a problem," said Tagor, a
local kiosk owner, who sells an anti-fungus cream.