"Today, flights to and from Halim and Solo have returned to normal," spokesman of state-owned airport operator PT Angkasa Pura at the Adi Soemarmo Airport Danar Dewi told journalists.
On Thursday, three flights of Citilink and one flight of Batik Air operated from Adi Soemarmo to Halim Perdanakusuma, Dewi stated.
On Wednesday, the Halim Perdanakusuma Airport was temporarily shut down due to flash floods that inundated its runway, but operations resumed at 4:30 p.m. local time.
As a result of the airport's temporary closure, a Citilink flight got affected, Dewi pointed out.
Heavy and incessant rains lashed several parts of the provinces of West Java, Jakarta, and Banten over the past two days, causing flash floods that inundated various areas in the capital city in its greater areas, including Bekasi.
As a result, the Halim Perdanakusuma Airport was temporarily closed on Wednesday, as its runway got flooded. All flight activities were diverted to the Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Cengkareng, Banten Province.
According to Director General of Air Transportation of the Transportation Ministry Polana Banguningsih Pramesti, Halim Perdanakusuma was closed over safety grounds.
The floodwaters reached up to 30 centimeters on the runway. Access to the airport was also blocked by the floodwaters that had submerged areas outside the airport, Pramesti remarked on Wednesday.
The National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) noted that the floods, inundating several areas in Jakarta, Bekasi, Depok, Bogor city, Bogor District, Tangerang City, and South Tangerang District, had killed 16 people.
Eight of them were Jakarta's residents -- M Ali (82), Siti Hawa (72), Willi Surahman, Sutarmi (73), Agus (19), Sanusi, Arfiqo Alif (16), and Yuda Irawan (29). Among them were those who died of drowning and electric shock. Related news: Flood forces temporary shutdown of operations at Halim Perdanakusuma
EDITED BY INE
Translator: Aris W, Rahmad Nasution
Editor: Suharto
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