Riau put on alert against flooding

PEKANBARU, Riau: The province has now been put under full alert status against the possibility of natural disasters, particularly floods, the head of the provincial office of the Ministry of Social Services, Rustam Effendy, said.

The recently high rainfall has threatened to inundate areas of the province, particularly along the basins of the three rivers in the province, the Kampar, Siak and Indragiri, Effendy said here on Saturday.

"We have made preparations for the worst case scenarios," he said.

In the village of Meranti Pandak in the Rumbai subdistrict, for example, some people have left for higher ground as the water reaches about a level of half a meter, he added.

Areas in Riau highly prone to flooding are the Kampar, Siak Hulu and Bunut subdistricts in the basin area of the Kampar River; the Rumbai, Limapuluh and Senapelan subdistricts in the Pekanbaru municipality and the basin area of the Indragiri River, including Rengat, the capital of the district of Indragiri Hulu.