0 No Signs of Respite in Jakarta as Deluge Continues

A soaked Jakarta is bracing for another deluge of rain today, with weather forecasters predicting that electrical storms and a downpour are likely in the afternoon as the city struggles to get back on its feet. The continued rain will give roads little time to drain, meaning public transportation services may not run as scheduled today and even more intense traffic congestion than usual is likely. 

On Thursday, nine people were confirmed dead, the entire TransJakarta busway network was shut down, the iconic Hotel Indonesia traffic circle was submerged in waist-deep muddy water and for the first time in six years, the State Palace was flooded. Jakartans woke up to a torrential downpour that, when combined with rising levels in several rivers, caused deadly, traffic-crippling floods up to two meters deep across much of the capital. National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho said initially said that five people had died in the flooding since Tuesday. 

Data was later updated on Thursday, reporting at least nine people dead from the floods. Abdul Karim, the municipal fire department chief, told local news portal detik.com that some of the deaths were caused by electrocution, while others were due to disease or old age, but all were related to the flooding. Sutopo added that 25,276 families were affected by the floods, with the number of displaced people at 15,447. State electricity firm Perusahaan Listrik Negara said it had cut power supplies to several areas in Jakarta and Tangerang to prevent electrocutions. 

The scale of the flooding prompted Jakarta Governor Joko Widodo to declare a state of emergency for the capital for the 10 days to Jan. 27. Speaking at the flooded City Hall on Thursday, Joko blamed the severity of the flooding on the large volume of water flowing into the city’s rivers from upstream areas in Bogor and Cianjur. The Ciliwung River has been a major concern in the past few days, and on Thursday morning the water level at the Manggarai floodgate, which regulates the river, hit 1,030 centimeters — much higher than the critical level of 950 centimeters. 

Joko also indicated that flooding this year could be worse than in 2007, when 60 percent of the city was submerged. He noted that the highest level recorded at the Manggarai floodgate in 2007 was only 1,020 centimeters. He said that President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono granted permission to open the floodgate to ease flooding in southern and eastern parts of the city. The decision, however, was not without consequences. Opening the floodgate allowed a reprieve to flooded areas in East Jakarta such as Kampung Melayu and Cililitan, which have been inundated since Monday, but the volume of water surging west and north caused flooding in the State Palace, along the key thoroughfare of Jalan Thamrin and in the district of Kota. 

Before noon, the yard of the palace, located on Jalan Medan Merdeka Utara in Central Jakarta, was reported to be under 50 centimeters of water — the first time since the major flooding of early 2007. Almost the entire length of Jalan Thamrin, stretching from the Hotel Indonesia traffic circle at its southern end to the Patung Kuda traffic circle at its northern end, was also submerged in up to 50 centimeters of water. Several other roads throughout the city were also affected, including Jalan Sudirman in Central and South Jakarta, Jalan S. Parman in West Jakarta and Jalan Gatot Subroto in South Jakarta. 

The extent of the flooding, which the BNPB said affected 500 wards across the city’s 25 subdistricts, forced city authorities to halt operations of all TransJakarta bus lines shortly after 9 a.m. As of press time, the bus service had still not been restored. M. Akbar, the head of the city-run bus operator, said that the decision to stop TransJakarta services was made in light of the high water levels along the busway routes. The maximum allowable limit for maintaining operations is 20 centimeters, he said, but most of the affected areas were even deeper under water. 

He also said that three bus shelters along Jalan Daan Mogot in West Jakarta were being used as temporary shelters for residents forced to flee their homes. Commuter train services were also disrupted by the floods, which swamped Gambir Station near the State Palace and Kota Station in North Jakarta. Gridlocked traffic was reported in several areas where roads and underpasses were cut off by deep water, while non-elevated sections of the toll road network also experienced flooding. These included a stretch of the airport toll road and the Jakarta-Merak highway.

Additional reporting by ID/Eko Adityo Nugroho
source : the jakarta globe