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Jakarta flood displaces 340,000
Indonesia’s capital faced more misery yesterday from floods that officials estimate have killed at least 20 people and displaced 340,000, as swollen rivers and canals spilled muddy water onto the city streets.
The flooding in parts of the tropical city of nine million people has been up to 4 meters (13 feet) deep, causing blackouts, cutting telephone lines and blocking key roads.
Floods are common in Indonesia during the rainy season, but the devastation of recent days has been the worst in five years, and meteorology officials have warned the city could suffer heavy rains until the end of the month.
“In Jakarta, Bekasi and Tangerang, 340,000 people have been displaced,” Rustam Pakaya, a health ministry official said by telephone, referring to two areas around the capital.
Officials are also concerned water contamination and the displacement of so many people could bring disease in a city already struggling with a surge in cases of dengue fever.
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