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Anies instructs mayors, officials to handle floods
Floodwater to a depth of 1.5-meters struck Balekambang, East Jakarta, affecting two neighborhoods in the area.
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Flood water inundates Jl. Jatinegara Barat Raya in East Jakarta on April 26. (kompas.com/ Ardito Ramadhan D)
J
akarta Governor Anies Baswedan has instructed South Jakarta Mayor Marullah Matali and East Jakarta Mayor M Anwar to be on the alert for flooding.
Anies said he had told officials in flood-stricken areas in the city to anticipate rising water levels from the Katulampa sluice gate in Bogor, West Java.
“If you don’t see the mayors [at their offices] it is because everyone is standing by at the flood-stricken areas to get ready if there is any more floodwater from upstream,” Anies said as quoted by wartakota.tribunnews.com on Friday.
Read also: Thousands flee as floods hit Jakarta, Depok, Tangerang
He has also deployed staff from the Water Management Agency as well as Public Facility Maintenance Agency (PPSU) to several areas.
Anies said the weather in Jakarta was not necessarily causing the floods, but residents had to always be aware of the risk of flooding from Bogor.
“This is an example of floods that are caused by flooding from the southern upstream. We receive the water from the upstream when the rain is heavy there,” Anies said.
The rain that hit Bogor and surrounding areas had overwhelmed Katulampa sluice gate and Depok water gate in West Java.
As a consequence, some areas in South and East Jakarta have been inundated, such as Lenteng Agung, Srengseng Sawah, Pengadegan, Rawajati, Pejaten Timur, Cawang, Balekambang, Kampung Melayu and Bidara Cina.
Parmi, a resident of Pejaten, South Jakarta, said the flooding had been the worst in the last five years.
“The last time floods hit my house was five years ago. The latest floods did not hit my house,” she said. She added that she had secured her belongings on the second story of her house.
In Balekambang, East Jakarta, two neighborhoods have been flooded to a depth of 1.5 meters. The neighborhood head of RT 07 in Balekambang, Heri Prasetya, said 350 families had been affected by the flooding in his area.
“The subdistrict has coordinated to provide aid for residents. They will provide food until the families can go back to their homes,” he said.
Balekambang is one of the areas affected by a river restoration project, which has been stalled for years.
Heri said people in his area wanted to move as deemed necessary by the project, but many were held up by bureaucracy.
“[They don’t have proper] house or land certificates, and there are some whose ownership is disputed,” he said.
The flooding has also caused trash to pile up in the Ciliwung River under the bridge on Jl. Abdullah Syafei in Kampung Melayu, East Jakarta. The trash came from upstream and became enmeshed in bridge construction work.
Leo Tantino, head of East Jakarta Water Body Management, said 30 trucks had been deployed to remove the trash from the location.
“We haven’t weighed it yet, but 30 big trucks [were deployed]. Each truck has a capacity of about 6 cubic meters,” Leo said as quoted by kompas.com. (gis)
