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loods have been hitting a number of regions across the country, displacing people, destroying agricultural fields and inundating hundreds of houses in the affected areas.

The National Mitigation Agency (BNPB) recorded 1,495 disaster incidents that have occurred across the archipelago from January to August, with floods (535 times), tornadoes (405) and landslides (323) as the most frequent ones.

The events, which claimed a total of 257 lives and injured 303, forced 2.1 million people to migrate from their areas as thousands of houses were destroyed.

Of the disasters, landslides were the deadliest having killing 126 people of the total lives claimed, more than floods, which killed 70 people, and simultaneous floods and landslides, which killed 41 people.

“We predict the number of flash floods and landslides to keep increasing until March next year,” BNPB spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho told The Jakarta Post.

According to the agency’s data, 315 cities and regencies in Java, Kalimantan, Sumatra and Papua are vulnerable to flash floods, which threaten 63.7 million people.

In the West and Central Lombok regencies of West Nusa Tenggara (NTB), full-day heavy rains on Sunday caused floods in the two regions, inundating at least 300 houses, destroying over 120 hectares of agricultural fields and forcing some 500 people to evacuate.

The provincial Disaster Mitigation Agency (BPBD NTB) head, Muhammad Rum, said the floods hit Lembar subdistrict in West Lombok and Montong Ajan subdistrict in Central Lombok on Monday afternoon. “We have distributed aid to these two locations,” Rum said on Monday.

He said the flood in Lembar inundated around 200 houses due to an overflowing river and high tide occurring at the same time, while in Montong Ajan, a flash flood affected around 100 houses and forced over 90 people, including 30 children and 11 babies, to flee their homes.

“The two locations are recovering but the people are still taking shelter at safer places,” said Rum, adding that makeshift tents and public kitchens had been set up in the affected areas.

In Tolitoli, Central Sulawesi, rains of high intensity have caused floods to hit the regency twice last week.

The most recent flood occurred on Sunday, inundating Tuweley subdistrict, Baru subdistrict and other regions in the downtown area for between 60 centimeters to 1.5 meters, according to Tolitoli Regent M Saleh Bantilan.

The heavy rain was accompanied by lightning on Saturday that flattened a tree to the ground at an elementary school on Jl. Magamu, Baru subdistrict, paralyzing the traffic flow.

A local, Bahtiar, blamed the flood partly on the clogged drainage facilities, causing the water to overflow to the street and to people’s houses.

He urged local administration to find solutions and make flood mitigation a priority for its development program. “The rivers have to be dredged. The ditches have to be cleaned out,” he said.

Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) spokesman Harry Tirto warned citizens living in South Sumatra, Lampung, Greater Jakarta, West Java, Central Java, East Java, South Kalimantan, East Kalimantan, Bali, Maluku, North Maluku and West Papua of potential rainfall of high intensity over the next three days.

He said the heavy rain would also be accompanied by lightning and strong winds, which could cause floods, landslides and bring down trees.

He warned operators of maritime transportation, including fishermen and beachgoers, to be vigilant as sea waves were predicted to reach up to 4 meters, including in the southern waters of Java, Bali and Lombok in West Nusa Tenggara.

“With the recent rains of high intensity, we urge the public to stay on alert for potential disasters. Fishermen also need to be extra cautious due to potential tidal waves,” he said on Monday. (fac)