Environment     

Jakarta in emergency status as flood rages

Xinhua, January 18, 2013

• Photo taken on Jan. 17 shows flooded areas in Jakarta, capital of Indonesia. [Chinanews.com]

  
  
  

  Senior Indonesian officials in charge of flood mitigation efforts imposed emergency alert status on the capital city Thursday which will last through Jan. 27.

  "More tents and shelters would be set up in more locations in the capital city to help the refugees," Coordinating Minister for Public Welfare affairs Agung Laksono said on the sidelines of a coordination meeting.

  He said that more than 19,000 people are seeking refuge in the capital city. Along with providing shelters, the central government, city hall and National Disaster Mitigation Agency of BNPB would pay high attention to sanitation and medical assistance for the refugees.

  Jakarta Governor Joko Widodo said his government would issue a decree on emergency alert so as to ease the operation to help the refugees.

  "The decree would ease procurements of relief supplies for the refugees. It doesn't have to be conducted on auction basis in order to provide swift relief aid for the people affected by the flood," he said on the sidelines of the meeting.

  Nine people were reportedly killed during the flood caused by massive downpour in the capital city in the last few days. Many of them were elders, the authority said.

  Indonesian president has told the military and police to take part in flood mitigation efforts by securing the shelters hosting the refugees and providing food supplies to them.

  Agung Laksono said the current flood pounding at the capital is worse than the one in 2007.

  Officials from Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics agency also said that high intensity rain would keep pouring down in a few days to come.

   

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