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Three days on, floods still trap residents in Bekasi, South Jakarta
As floods recede, residents struggle to clean their houses from mud.
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A search and rescue team uses a rubber boat to rescue flood victims at the Jati Bening Permai housing complex in Bekasi, West Java, on Jan. 1. (Antara/Saptono)
S
ofian, 55, eventually returned to his house in the flood-hit Puri Gede Permai housing complex in Jatiasih, Bekasi municipality, West Java, on Friday after he was evacuated to a nearby shelter the previous day.
He recalled the long wait for the evacuation that had left him, his wife and two children stranded on the rooftop of their house for hours. The Puri Gede Permai complex is among the most flood-affected areas, with flood water reaching as high as 3 meters on Thursday.
"I only got a portion of food for my whole family while waiting to be rescued, so we shared the food," Sofian told The Jakarta Post. He was eventually evacuated at 11 a.m. on Thursday.
Sofian, however, might have to wait longer before he can sleep comfortably in his own home. Upon returning to his house, he was welcomed by ankle-deep mud. He hoped to borrow equipment with which to clean his house but to no avail, forcing him to buy it at a nearby store. To make things worse, there was also no clean water.
A water truck has since been deployed to the area, distributing 4,000 liters of water to residents with each household receiving 19 liters, most of which was used to clean their houses, which have been deluged by thick mud. Sofian, however, will have to wait to get his share of water as the truck has yet to pass his house.
National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) field coordinator Roslin Lamtarida, who paid a visit to the Puri Gede Permai shelter on Friday, said that a request for clean water had been made to the region-owned tap water company (PDAM). Rescue officers and volunteers had also been helping to clean up the mud, she said.
Assuming the cleaning process goes well and there is no more flooding, she predicted that the situation around the complex would return to normal by Saturday or Sunday.
