"I asked the public works minister (who informed me that) the breached part was being repaired. We hope the embankment breach will be plugged by tomorrow," the president stated after observing a football match at Gelora Bung Karno Stadium here on Thursday (March 21) evening.
Jokowi remarked that the breach caused the water from Wulan River to flow into residential areas, resulting in floods.
According to the local authority, the flood inundated 89 villages in Demak's 11 sub-districts. The flood also cut off the main road connecting Demak to the neighboring Kudus District on its east.
"The volume of the water flowing (from the river) is huge," Jokowi pointed out.
The National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) and other stakeholders have responded promptly to the ensuing flood due to the embankment breach affecting some 23,436 Demak residents, Jokowi noted.
He said that the embankment breach was the second in a month after the Public Works and Public Housing Ministry repaired the first breach last February.
"During the first breach, the ministry promptly repaired the damaged part for three days. After the first embankment repair was completed, it was breached again," Jokowi remarked.
The president also said construction workers toiled day and night to repair the breached embankment.
"Moreover, the rain there has a very high intensity," the president remarked.
Ketanjung and Karanganyar villages of Karanganyar sub-district in Demak experienced flooding on February 5 after heavy rainfall caused Wulan River's embankment to breach.
The authorities revealed that the rain caused two leakages in the embankment, each spanning 20 meters and 30 meters.
On February 14, the government managed to plug the leaks. To remove floodwater from residential areas, the government provided more than 20 water-suctioning machines with a total capacity of pumping out 11,500 liters of water per second.
The government also repaired the leaked embankment, making it stronger than it was prior to the breach that left Demak district inundated, according to the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB).
Related news: Govt to compensate flood-hit homeowners in Demak: BNPB
Related news: BNPB starts focusing on post-flood measures in Central Java's Demak
Translator: Andi Firdaus, Nabil Ihsan
Editor: Tia Mutiasari
Copyright © ANTARA 2024
