Flood inundates hundreds of houses in Kosambi

Floodwater inundated hundreds of houses in Dadap Gili village in Kosambi, Tangerang, on Tuesday following heavy rains that hit Greater Jakarta on Monday.

The houses were flooded in water up to 80 centimeters deep, forcing 600 residents living in four community units (RW) in the coastal village to seek refuge at a nearby warehouse complex.

One of the flood victims, Mumu, 45, said the floods had first hit her house early on Monday when she and her family were asleep.

“The flood subsided on Monday morning, but in the afternoon it returned. Panicked, we rushed to the warehousing complex for safety,” she said.

Hundreds of students of SDN Dadap II state elementary, however, continued their classes even with floodwater inundating their classrooms.

Kosambi distric chief Slamet Budi said floods had hit the village every year since 2007.

Tangerang Disaster Response Team (Tagana) chairman Endang Aryadi said the flood victims had been evacuated using rubber dinghies.

“Today, some residents have returned home to clean up the mud, but others are still waiting for the floodwaters to recede,” he said.