Living with the fear of floods

Devastating floods have occurred in different parts of the country and in some parts of the capital in recent weeks.

This year alone, flash floods in North Sumatra swept away houses and damaged public facilities. Reports said the floods claimed dozens of lives and left thousands homeless.

Living in flood-prone Pluit, North Jakarta, has enabled me to view the news from a very personal perspective, because my family and I experience the problem almost every year.

During the "big one" that hit in 1996, which paralyzed main thoroughfares in the city and left several people dead, our neighborhood was submerged under about 70 centimeters of floodwater for two days.

The electricity supply was cut off and there were no cars or public buses, only huge vehicles, operating on the streets.

On the second day, some residents in the neighborhood were seen on the street, surveying the neighborhood with surfing boards or rafting boats.

Two days after, the water level slightly subsided. Like some other residents, mostly women and children, we left the area and sought refuge at a relative's house until the water receded.

Three days later, my family and I returned home in the morning and found our house "adorned" by 10-centimeter-thick oily mud, with different levels of brownish water marks on the walls and dead plants in the garden.

With cleaning equipment in hand, the whole family worked hand in hand to remove the mud and polish the furniture. We burned charcoal in cooking pans and put one in each room to help absorb humidity before putting things back in their original places.

At the end of the day, after our long hard work and with an aching back, we discussed the right time to repaint the house, which is the only way to remove the water marks from the walls.

The flood experience led to sharp criticism of the city government about the construction of a huge mall in 1997 on a plot initially allocated as an open park and catchment area in Pluit.

Despite strong protests from residents, the project went on.

Unfortunately, our floods are our doing.

Because of land conversion, Jakarta has less than 1,550 hectares of swamps and catchment sites, far below the ideal figure at 13,000 hectares. We also heard Governor Sutiyoso wash his hands of the problem, saying that the administration has no solution to the flooding in the capital, with 40 percent of the area below sea level.

Pluit residents believe that the only way to spare themselves from the annual trouble is by rebuilding their houses on elevated ground. The elevation level in my neighborhood varies, but my family's house is now one meter higher than the street.

Residents have learned to expect the inevitable after hours of long downpours. But floods can occur so quickly, ruining things on the floor or papers and books kept in lower drawers unless you move with military precision to get them out of harm's way.

My family anticipates a possible flood by ensuring that we have secured valuable things (like electronics and carpets) or removed important documents or books to higher surfaces, including the kitchen shelves (it is better to sacrifice clean dishes because at least they are washable).

Bricks are also available in the garage or garden. These can be stacked to elevate easily ruined furniture like sofas and chairs. We check the bathrooms to see if there are things laid on the floor. Dirty laundry or cleaning equipment can be placed on a wash stand or toilet. Potted plants in the garden can be put on top of the table and chairs in the terrace.

We also check the refrigerator and secure the rice container in the kitchen. We make sure that we have enough drinking water, candles, a flashlight and first aid kit during the deluge.

When it's over, we keep everything at the ready for when the next one hits.

An environmentalist friend of mine says that with rampant illegal logging in West Java, continuing land misappropriation, woefully poor flood management and the fact the northern part of the capital is already some 15 to 25 centimeters below sea level, floods will remain a problem.

If it continues, maybe one day Jakarta will be a "Venice of the East", with all of us dealing with flooding. It sounds pretty, but let me assure you it isn't.

-- Maria Endah Hulupi