Flooding in Indonesia by Elizabeth Saary
Torrential rain yesterday has killed three people and left nearly 2,000 people homeless in Indonesia’s capital, Jakarta.
Floodwaters submerged roads across much of the city’s outskirts bringing traffic to a standstill and forcing many people to abandon their vehicles.
Thousands of homes in East Java’s Pasuruan region were inundated with floodwaters, forcing out residents who waded through the muddy knee high waters. Residents erected tents along raised roadsides as temporary shelters. The floods also saw the closure of Jakarta’s Soekarno-Hatta International Airport for over 5 hours. Scores of flights were delayed due to poor visibility from the rain and fog which cloaked much of Jakarta.
As the floodwaters start to recede, Health officials are worried about the threat of water-borne diseases, although the threat has so far been contained.
Seasonal downpours regularly cause flash floods and landslides each year in Indonesia. Millions of people there live in mountainous areas or near fertile plains which are most affected during these seasonal monsoonal downpours. In February 2007 more than 80 people were killed and thousands left homeless from floods and landslides that hit the outskirts of Jakarta.
Forecasters expect further pulses of heavy rain to continue until Monday before it turns a little drier, but still with the risk of a few showers.
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