POSTED: 5:02 a.m. EST, February 4, 2007
JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) -- Flooding that has killed at least nine people and forced about 200,000 from their homes in Indonesia's capital showed no sign of abating Sunday, as overflowing rivers from four days of unceasing rain sent muddy water gushing into homes and shops across the city.
The government dispatched medical teams on rubber rafts into the worst-hit districts amid fears that disease may spread among residents living in squalid conditions with limited access to clean drinking water. "Jakarta is now on the highest alert level," said Sihar Simanjuntak, an official monitoring the water levels of the many rivers that crisscross the city of 12 million people. (See photo gallery of the flooding)
Incessant rain over Jakarta and hills to its south from Thursday triggered the city's worst floods in recent memory, highlighting the country's infrastructure problems as it tries to attract badly needed foreign investment. Waters reaching 4 meters (13 feet) high in places have inundated more than 20,000 homes, school and hospitals in poor and wealthy districts alike, forcing authorities to cut off electricity and water supplies and paralyzing transport networks. Dr. Rustam Pakaya, from the health ministry's crisis center, said nine people in Jakarta and surrounding towns have died as of Sunday afternoon, mostly either by drowning or electrocution. He said that about 200,000 had been made homeless, many of whom are staying with friends or family on higher ground at mosques and government agencies. Some are holding out on the second floors of their homes, refusing to be relocated by soldiers in rubber dinghies, officials said. "We fear that diarrhea and dysentery may break out, as well as illnesses spread by rats," Pakaya said. "People must be careful not to drink dirty water." In some districts, residents reported that waters receded slightly Sunday, but in others fresh flooding occurred as heavy rains over the southern hills in Puncak caused rivers to swell across the city. Yusnizar, a 53-year-old living in housing estate on Jakarta's western outskirts, said some 1,000 houses were awash with one-meter high muddy water. "Fortunately, people here are helping each other," said Yusnizar, who goes by a single name.
Indonesia's meteorological agency is forecasting rain for the next two weeks. Environment Minister Racmat Witoelar blamed poor urban planning for the disaster. "Authorities hand out (building permits) even though they clearly violate environmental impact studies," The Jakarta Post newspaper quoted him as saying. Jakarta Governor Sutiyoso, who was criticized when massive floods struck the city five years ago, blamed widespread deforestation in Puncak, saying it had destroyed water catchment areas. Seasonal downpours cause dozens of landslides and flash floods each year in Indonesia, a sprawling archipelago of 17,000 islands, where millions of people live in mountainous areas or near fertile plains. Jakarta is regularly struck with floods, though not on the scale as in recent days. Dozens of slum areas near rivers are washed out each year. Residents either refuse or are too poor to vacate the districts.
Note from me:
Jakarta paralized. Not only the city but people's lives, my life. When these kind of disasters happends, you then realises that you are not as independent as you think you are. Disconnected from the outside world, no phone line both mobile and land line, electricity, internet on and off...you feel lost. Especially with 24 hours constant news update on how the flooding has gotten worse by the hour and still a week of the worse to go. Depressing. I went to Ranch Market this afternoon and bought gourmet food and snacks for my family to munch at home, but when I reached home and found out that thousands of people who's houses had been flooded were starving due to the short of food supplies...I felt bad. I regretted for having bought gourmet while other people were suffering. We should've bought food for those who needed it the most, especially the one's who'd lost their homes. 20 people have died so far from this disaster and I'm still home blogging in my home, safe and healthy. This is wrong, I should do something..I should help. Can I? What can I do? Just now I stopped blogging and asked my husband how we can help? how can we send food? where to send? - he said it's difficult to even reach those area's. But that's not good enough...just because it's hard to reach, doesn't mean we have to give up and not help. If it was me stranded there with no food, I want people not to give up to help me. It's just not right. Are there alot of people like me? Confused, scared but actually wanting to help? If yes, it's scary..it mean's we are short of help. This is not good at all.
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