"The municipalities of central, north and west Jakarta have been hit the worst by the floods," spokesman for the BNPB, Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, stated here on Monday.
Water at the Karet sluice gate had reached a height of 630 centimeters at noon, which means it had reached the highest emergency alert status level I.
Among the places affected by the floods in Central Jakarta were the Tanah Abang Railway Station, Jati Baru, and Petamburan; Jati Pinggir, JPO antara Roxy, and Latumenten were inundated in West Jakarta; and in North Jakarta, Teluk Gong, Kapuk, and Muara Angke were hit by floodwaters.
"The level of water at a number of sluice gates of rivers has increased. At the Katulampa sluice gate, it reached 80 centimeters (alert status level III) at noon; at the Manggarai sluice gate, it was 800 centimeters (alert III) at 11 a.m. and 825 centimeter (siaga III) at noon," he informed.
The sluice gate in Pasar Ikan reached 208 centimeters (alert II), and at the Pluit sluice gate, water level rose by 30 centimeters.
Given these conditions, the floods could spread further, Nugroho pointed out, warning those living along the Ciliwung river basin area to stay alert for flash floods.
"The floods in Jakarta were not caused by overflowing rivers, but were a result of a poor drainage system and land spatial planning," he explained.
Furthermore, Governor of Jakarta Basuki Tjahaja Purnama alias Ahok suspected that the flooding in the capital city was an act of sabotage.
"This morning, I woke up at 2 a.m. because of the rain. When I checked the CCTV camera footage, I found that the one in Istiqlal was off. I suspected that the palace was flooded and that it could be an act of sabotage or a deliberate action. All waterways were functioning well, so flooding should have been impossible," Ahok noted in his office, which was also inundated, on Monday.
Incessant downpours have triggered floods in at least 49 locations in Jakarta, according to the Jakarta Disaster Mitigation Office (BPBD).
"The heavy rainfall that began Sunday evening and continued till this morning has inundated 49 locations throughout Jakarta," Bambang Suryaputra of the BPBD confirmed here on Monday.
Of the 49 flood-affected locations, 22 are in Central Jakarta. These include Jalan MH Thamrin, Cempaka Baru, Ahmad Yani, Kwitang Raya,Majapahit, Budi Kemuliaan, Percetakan Negara, Jalan Cempaka Putih Tengah, and Senen Raya, among several other places.
T.W004 (f001/INE/S012)
EDITED BY INE.
Editor: Suryanto
Copyright © ANTARA 2015
