"This flood is different from floods in the previews years. The flood waters suddenly came very high," Jihadul Arifin, an inhabitant of Antang Makassar housing complex, said here, Wednesday, Jan 23.
The water current was very strong and it reached a height of an adult`s chest, he added.
The flash flood came from Gowa District, which shares border with Manggala Sub-district, after the Bili-Bili dam was opened, he noted.
He said he and other flood victims did not have time to save their belongings because the flash flood came without warning on Tuesday at around 4 p.m. local time.
"I and other residents are now taking refuge in a mosque. We need food, clothes and blankets," he said.
On the previous day, parts of Makassar City were also flooded following incessant heavy rain that fell from Monday evening until Tuesday noon.
The local authorities distributed relief aid and were ready to evacuate the flood victims, Taufiek Rahman, head of the Makassar disaster mitigation office (BPBD), stated here, Tuesday.
Floodwaters reached height of up to 1.5 meters in Katimbang, Biringkanayan Sub-district, he noted.
The local BPBD deployed nine rubber boats to assist in the evacuation process, particularly in the Kodam III and Antang Blok 10 residential areas.
Mayor of Makassar Moh Ramdhan Pomanto urged Makassar residents to remain vigilant during the current extreme weather that hit the city.
He appealed to residents to stay indoors if they did not have urgent matters to tend to outdoors.
Several roads in the city were also inundated.
Currently, Indonesia is experiencing the peak of the rainy season, so the Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) has warned of possible hydrometeorological disasters.
The agency called on the people to remain vigilant, as Indonesia was currently experiencing the peak of the rainy season, Mulyono Rahadi Prabowo, the BMKG`s deputy in charge of meteorology, noted in a statement, on January 17, 2019.
Reporting by Muh Hasanuddin
Editing by Fardah
Reporter: Antara
Editor: Azizah Fitriyanti
Copyright © ANTARA 2019
