We must look at the future. During the January 1 flooding the distribution of aid was disrupted as several roads were cut offJakarta (ANTARA) - The West Jakarta municipal administration has readied inflatable boats as an anticipatory step to help the evacuation of victims and the distribution of aid to affected areas in case of another flooding.
The inflatable boats are needed since access to flood-hit areas was cut off when several roads were flooded early this year, West Jakarta Mayor Rustam Effendi said on Sunday.
"We must look at the future. During the January 1 flooding the distribution of aid was disrupted as several roads were cut off., In the meantime, the number of inflatable boats were limited while the area that we covered to distribute aid was quite large,," he said.
He said the West Jakarta Municipality has received more inflatable boats from the National Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas) Office in Jakarta as well as from private institutions.
"We also receive assistance from the West Jakarta Military District and the West Jakarta Metropolitan Police Resort. Hopefully, when the January 1 flooding recurs we will be able to handle its impact soon," he said.
He said when the January 1 flood recurred, the safety of children and mothers will top the list of priorities, he said.
Earlier, the mayor said the drainage system in West Jakarta needed improvement as part of strategies to mitigate flooding.
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Translator: Devi Nindy Sari Ramadhan/Suhar
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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