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‘It was scary’: Wall collapse raises concerns about coastal safety in Jakarta
“We’re still investigating it. We need at least three or four days or maybe a week,” a ministry official said.
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The National Capital Integrated Coastal Development (NCICD) coastal wall on the east side of the Nizam Zachman Port in Penjaringan, North Jakarta, on Dec. 6. (JP/P.J. Leo)
A
170-meter section of the coastal wall built as part of the National Capital Integrated Coastal Development (NCICD) in North Jakarta, collapsed earlier this week, prompting the government to launch an investigation amid concerns about the safety of coastal areas from future flooding.
Videos circulating on social media this week showed the concrete coastal wall, built by the Public Works and Housing Ministry, slowly collapsing at the Nizam Rachman Port in Penjaringan.
Beberap teman pemancing sempat merekam Detik2 tanggul penahan ombak Di Muara Baru Jakarta Utara roboh kemarin sore. @AmbarwatiRexy, @yusuf_dumdum, @Dennysiregar7 pic.twitter.com/NrTDfLDeDZ
— Moy OSN (@manikmaya89) December 4, 2019
As a result, seawater has now inundated areas behind a dike that had been covered with soil for the embankment project, which is the first phase, called phase A, of the NCICD program. The first phase involves the strengthening of the existing coastal wall and the construction of a new coastal wall, totaling 120 kilometers along the coast of Jakarta, Bekasi in West Java and Tangerang, Banten. Since 2014, the central government and Jakarta administration have only built some 17 km of the proposed 120 km.
According to local residents, the incident occurred at around 4:30 p.m. on Dec. 3.
“I was sitting here [at a security post facing the shore] when I heard people screaming. We all went out to see what was happening,” ship technician Asri Mulyono told The Jakarta Post on Thursday.
The 47-year-old recalled how, when the incident occurred, he was afraid the ground where he stood would also give way, given that the entire port area is on reclaimed land.
