Rano Urges Water Resources Agency to Inspect Corroded Culverts Following Lenteng Agung Sinkhole

The Deputy Governor of Jakarta, Rano Karno, has revealed that the cause of the road collapse on Jalan Raya Lenteng Agung, South Jakarta, was due to corroded steel water culverts resulting from age. He has requested the Water Resources Agency (SDA) to map the condition of these steel culverts to facilitate necessary repairs.

“This is what it is called; the iron is Armco. It is a type of iron, but it has been in place for quite a long time, perhaps more than 30 years,” Rano told reporters in Lenteng Agung on Tuesday (2/6/2026).

Rano warned that other roads could also collapse due to the corroded condition of these steel culverts, known as armco. He urged the Water Resources Agency to conduct a thorough mapping of the infrastructure.

“When I was asked where else this might happen, I said it is undeniable that more road collapses will occur in Jakarta because there are many armco pipes in Jakarta in the same condition—old and inevitably corroded,” he explained.

He noted that some water pipes from the regional water utility (PDAM) have not been replaced for a century. The Jakarta Provincial Government is currently inventorying potential sinkhole risks caused by the ageing steel culverts.

“I was even told by PDAM that our water pipes have not been replaced for 100 years. Therefore, I have just asked whether the process of identifying potential risk points has begun,” he said.

Rano explained that the administration is conducting this inventory to anticipate future collapses. He mentioned that the water drainage system involved in the Lenteng Agung collapse originates from the University of Indonesia (UI) reservoir.