Floods in Indragiri Hulu regency, Riau, have intensified, inundating homes in up to a meter of water and forcing 1,240 families to evacuate to higher ground.
Indragiri Hulu Social Services Agency head Zulfahmi Adrian said the local administration had set the alert status to its highest level because floods had extended to other residential areas.
"We have involved the police and military to mitigate the negative impacts of the floods and accelerate relief aid supplies to disaster areas," he said Tuesday.
He added the floods, triggered by the four overflowing major rivers in Indragiri Hulu, had inundated 23 villages in five districts - seven villages in Batang Cenaku district, two villages and a subdistrict in Seberida, six in Peranap, six in Batang Peranap and one in Kelayang district.
Apart from engulfing thousands of homes, floodwaters have also swamped schools and health facilities and damaged roads, two bridges and dozens of fish farms.
"No casualties were recorded, and the amount of damage is still unclear," Zulfahmi said.
Continuous rain over the past week has triggered an increase in water levels in a number of rivers in Riau. Currently, floods have engulfed three regencies, while two others have raised their alert status.
Riau Governor Rusli Zainal urged regency administrations to focus on evacuation efforts to prevent casualties.
"Relief supplies to disaster areas must be stepped up so victims will not face more problems. The relevant agencies should work more carefully so aid can be channeled appropriately," Zulfahmi said.
Rusli also urged regency administrations and the relevant agencies in Riau to monitor the situation and prepare anticipatory measures in the future.
"This is crucial, so the flood issue does not become an annual event that we have to deal with," he said.
The Pekanbaru Meteorology and Geophysics Agency (BMG) has issued a warning to residents living along riverbanks to be on the alert, following high intensity rainfall in Rokan Hulu, Kuantan Sengingi and Kampar regencies.
Pekanbaru BMG weather analyst Marzuki said the heavy rainfall in the three regencies was due to tropical weather disturbances in the western part of Sumatra and the Indian Ocean.
The overflowing Kampar Kiri River, where water levels rose three meters above the river surface, affected 600 people from 120 families in Gunung Sahilan and Sahilan Darussalam villages in Gunung Sahilan district.
Floods also knocked out communications with both villages, after the only access to them, the Trans-Sumatra highway, was submerged in waist-deep floodwater.
"The floods have affected people's daily activities, with hundreds of hectares of oil palm and rubber farms also swamped," said Kampar regency secretary Zulher.
He added the local administration had erected makeshift tents on the Sungai Kampar Kiri bridge for 22 families who had taken refuge at other residents' homes earlier, and had provided a speedboat to accelerate relief aid distribution.
"Gunung Sahilan is prone to floods during the rainy season. Residents must always be on the alert to avoid casualties and the loss of property, especially when the water level tends to rise further because it is still raining. People in both villages will be evacuated to higher ground if the floods worsen," Zulher said.
Riau Social Services Agency relief affairs head Sudirman said around 100 families were forced to stay at a number of makeshift tents, after their homes were inundated in up to a meter of floodwater.
"The victims are mostly those who live alongside the overflowing river. I am currently at the location distributing aid to flood victims," he told The Jakarta Post by phone.
He added the Riau provincial administration had distributed 13 types of relief items to flood victims in Indragiri Hulu, including 4.5 tons of rice and 7,600 cartons of instant noodles. Flood victims in Kampar, he added, had received 3.2 tons of rice, 5,400 cartons of instant noodles and cooking utensils.
According to Sudirman, the entire relief aid is part of the government's assistance allocated from the state budget.
This year, he added, Riau received Rp 3.6 billion (US$327,000) in disaster relief funds from the government, while its disaster response emergency funds, taken from the provincial budget, amounted to Rp 1.9 billion.
"Relief aid has to be supplied gradually from the provincial capital Palembang due to the lack of warehouses in the affected regencies," he said.
