A dam burst in the Cirendeu area of Ciputat, South Tangerang
(on the outskirts of Jakarta) before dawn on Friday, sending a flash flood into
a crowded residential neighborhood, submerging hundreds of houses and killing
at least 20 people, officials say.
A wave of water crashed into about 400 homes in the industrial area of
Tangerang at around 2 a.m., Health
Ministry Crisis
Center chief Rustam Pakaya said on Friday.
Floodwaters up to 2.5 meters deep were recorded in some areas, police and
witnesses said.
Pakaya said 20 bodies had been recovered by rescue teams, but that he expected
the death toll to rise because residents were sleeping when the disaster occurred.
At least a dozen others were reportedly still missing as of 10 a.m. Friday.
Antara news agency reported that search and rescue officers were still working
to rescue residents trapped in submerged houses. Survivors had been evacuated
to higher ground, at the nearby Muhammadiyah
University campus.
It was unclear what had caused the failure of the 10-meter-high dam, which was
holding back around 2 million cubic meters of water on the Pesanggrahan river, South
Jakarta Police chief Makmur Simbolon said.
A rescue worker identified only as Toni, told El Shinta radio that another 19
people were being treated at local hospitals for flood related ailments.
"The flash flood came suddenly and was horrifying," said Seto
Mulyadi, whose car was washed nearly 300 feet (100 meters) from his driveway
into a public park.
"My house in a dreadful mess ... Thank God my family is
safe," Mulyadi said, as quoted by The Associated Press.
Mulyadi said he had heard a siren sound at the dam before the flood waters had broken
all the windows and doors and inundated his house in 2.5 meters of water. Mulyadi
said his wife and four children were all sleep upstairs and had been unharmed.
(dre)
