Watch out for more floods: Weather agency

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The Meteorology and Geophysics Agency (BMG) said on Thursday that there was a possibility of sporadic heavy rainfall in Bogor, West Java, through to the end of this month, warning of more overflowing rivers in the city.

Achmad Zakir, head of weather forecast from the BMG, explained to The Jakarta Post that April to May was the transition period from the rainy season to the dry season, making the weather unpredictable.

"We admit to having a hard time forecasting the weather, including the heavy rainfall in Bogor on Wednesday that caused a major river in Jakarta to overflow," he said.

Thousands of houses in the Kampung Melayu subdistrict in East Jakarta were inundated when the Ciliwung River overflowed as a result of 91 millimeters of rainfall in the hills of Bogor, south of Jakarta.

During the transition period, Achmad said, rainfall would occasionally occur in some areas, mostly south of Jakarta, presenting BMG with a bigger challenge in predicting the weather.

The BMG had earlier announced the end of the rainy season in April and said that June would experience a very dry season, with almost no rainfall.

"Currently, the sea is warm, causing the formation of heavy water vapor to rise up to the clouds. Thus, the heavy clouds will create heavy rainfall in June, when the dry season starts," he said.

However, Achmad played down the weather report previously released by the agency and explained that the approaching dry season would be wetter than the previous season.