The temporary flooding that hit Jakarta on Monday afternoon was said to be the worst so far during this year’s rainy season.
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JAKARTA, KOMPAS – Heavy rain that lasted four hours, accompanied by thunder, hit the capital on Monday (11/12). Although it is no longer an unusual occurrence for Jakartans, the temporary flooding on Monday afternoon was said to be the worst so far during this year’s rainy season. No lives were lost in the floods.
Less than an hour after the heavy rain, traffic on several thoroughfares began to slow. Long traffic jams were unavoidable, such as on the Sudirman-Thamrin main thoroughfare in Central Jakarta, Jl. Rasuna Said in South Jakarta, Jl. MT Haryono in East Jakarta and the Latumenten-S Parman-Kyai Tapa thoroughfare in West Jakarta.
Flooding accompanied severe traffic jams in several areas of the capital. Data from the Jakarta Disaster Mitigation Agency (BPBD) showed that flooding along Jl. Rasuna Said and Jl. Sudirman reached a height of 50 centimeters.
Dozens of private vehicles, public transportation vehicles and trucks, as well as countless numbers of motorcycles, stalled in the floodwaters. “It did paralyze (traffic), but it quickly receded,” Jakarta BPBD head Jupan Royter said yesterday. By 7:00 p.m., the flood had receded and vehicles were able to resume traveling on the city’s roads.
According to Hudha Julianto, 29, an employee of a state-owned enterprise in Kuningan, South Jakarta, it was the worst flood during this year’s rainy season. Flooding reached heights of 10-40 cm at 1:30 p.m.-3:30 p.m. “Luckily, by the time people started heading home from work, the waters had receded. Traffic had also started to flow,” he said.
Nada, 23, an employee working in the Blok M area, South Jakarta, echoed his statement. Floodwaters as high as 50 centimeters flowed with a strong current in various areas, including around Pasaraya Blok M and Blok M Terminal. “The current was so strong that it felt as if my body was being swept away,” she said.
Planet Hollywood on Jl. Gatot Subroto was flooded. The cinema’s staff asked theatergoers to exit the building in an orderly manner at 2:30 p.m. Wardi, 34, who was at the cinema, said that water rushed in after the ceiling caved in. “We were told to get out while we were in the theater. At the exit, the water had flooded the yard,” he said.
Flood-prone areas on Jl. Daan Mogot in West Jakarta were hit by flooding that reached 30 cm high. Jl. Tomang Raya from Harmoni to the traffic lights near the Merak toll road was also surrounded by floodwaters.
Jakarta planning
Interviewed as he was checking the pumping station at the Dukuh Atas tunnel, Central Jakarta, Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan said that his administration intended to implement a river naturalization program. Some of the capital’s rivers will be dredged depending on the surrounding conditions, while natural life along the rivers will continue to be maintained.
The Dukuh Atas tunnel became flooded yesterday with waters reaching a meter high that receded 2.5 hours later. A truck broke down and was pushed out of the way by road users.
Separately, Jakarta Deputy Governor Sandiaga Uno reminded the administration’s working units to anticipate climate change. “Weather anomalies are something I always talk about. The weather can be predicted through the Jakarta Smart City [system]. But there is 10 percent that cannot be predicted,” he said.
One of the moves being undertaken by the Jakarta administration is preparing pumps. Many pumps are not functioning well at present, such the pumping station at Pluit reservoir. Sandi also asked that bags of sand be prepared to prevent water from overflowing the riverbanks.
Yet to peak
The citywide heavy rains that hit Jakarta and its surrounding areas yesterday was caused by a dominant flow of wet water vapor from the Indian Ocean above Jakarta. Even so, the rainy season has yet to peak.
“The rains that fell evenly across Jabodetabek marks the end of the [dry season] and the return of the monsoon or rainy season,” said Ramlan, head of weather forecast and information at the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG).
In addition to causing heavy traffic congestion and flooding, yesterday’s rains also caused a number of Jakarta rivers to overflow into local settlements. The dike that was supposed to shore up the Pulo River in RT 003/RW 006 of Jati Padang subdistrict in South Jakarta again collapsed.
The dike, which was made of cast cement, was no longer able to withstand the river’s water debit. Jati Padang head Novriyanto said that as of Monday night, 50-70 buildings in the subdistrict had been flooded, and 15-18 people had been evacuated.
A tree fell in the area around Karet Station and Kemayoran Station, disrupting the operation of the Tanah Abang-Manggarai train (KRL) service. A similar incident occurred at Tanjung Priok Station. As of late afternoon, the Jakarta Kota-Tanjung Priok KRL service was still not running.
Several regions
Heavy rains were also experienced in North Barito regency, Central Kalimantan. Six districts have been hit by flooding since November due to the overflowing Barito River, with floodwaters reaching 1.5-2 meters. The flood has so far claimed four lives. The local government is resigned to the flooding that hits every year.
The six affected districts are Lahei Barat, Lahei, Teweh Tengah, Teweh Baru, Teweh Timur and Gunung Timang, with more than 1,500 families affected by the floods.
North Barito regent Nadalsyah said the administration had no chance to deal with the flood. “We can only protect the people so that they are safe,” he said.
Flooding also hit Krembangan village in the Panjatan district of Kulon Progo regency, Yogyakarta, inundating 240 houses and around 45 hectares of farmland.
Panjatan district head Sudarmanto said the flood was caused by the Sen River dike collapsing. “We will fix the broken dike immediately. The people are ready to work together,” he said.
The latest flooding was the second to hit Kulon Progo in the past few weeks. Earlier on Nov. 28, five districts, including Panjatan, were hit by flood after heavy rains caused by tropical cyclone Cempaka. Thousands of local residents were evacuated from the area.