Indonesian floods close airport, cause landslides

The Jakarta Post   |  Mon, 02/09/2009 5:33 PM  |  National

Seasonal flooding in Indonesia has inundated thousands of houses, forced the closure of a regional airport and triggered landslides that killed at least two people, officials said Monday.

Dozens of flights to Semarang in central Java were canceled Monday after the main runay was submerged, said provincial spokesman Achyani.

It was unclear how long the airport would remain closed because heavy rainfall caused by Tropical Cyclone Freddy continued to lash the city of 1.3 million, said Bambang Suastono, the general manager of Semarang airport.

Railways and roads were submerged by up to 3 feet (1 meter) of water, cutting major transportation links, said Achyani, who like many Indonesians uses a single name.

Schools in Semarang were closed, and at least 4,500 people evacuated their homes and were sheltering at community centers, mosques or with relatives, Achyani said.

Two people died Sunday in landslides, one near Semarang and a second in west Java, officials said.

Riverbanks overflowed Monday morning in Jakarta, the capital, forcing more than 900 people into emergency tent shelters, said Edi Darma, a Disaster Management Agency spokesman.

Indonesia, a vast archipelago of 17,000 islands, is hit by deadly storms and floods that kill scores of people every year.

More than 200 people died in January when a ferry sank in the treacherous Makassar Strait off Sulawesi island after being hit by high waves.
 

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