ReliefWeb

Tri Indah Oktavianti

Heavy rain has caused flooding in parts of Aceh and Central Kalimantan, affecting hundreds of households and forcing residents to seek shelter.

Floodwater inundated at least 2,000 houses in Pidie Jaya regency of Aceh on Tuesday evening.

The floods hit at least eight subdistricts in two districts of the regency with the water level reaching up to 120 centimeters, according to the Pidie Jaya Disaster Mitigation Agency (BPDB). The affected subdistricts are Mns Mancang, Pante Beureunee, Blang Cut, Dayah Husen, Dayah Kruet and Beuringen in Meurah Dua district; as well as the subdistricts of Mesjid Tuha and Mns Lhok in Meureudu district.

“The flood, triggered by high-intensity rain, also inundated five prayer rooms and three schools. We have not yet received reports on any casualties from the incident,” National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) spokesman Agus Wibowo said in a statement on Wednesday.

He further said that the fast-response team of the Pidie Jaya BPBD had coordinated with relevant offices to provide food for the affected residents.

The floods had not yet receded as of Wednesday morning, he added.

Floodwater also inundated several subdistricts in North Barito regency, Central Kalimantan. Three flood-hit subdistricts are located in Lahei district and two are located in Central Teweh district.

Agus said in a separate statement that floodwater had started to inundate the areas on Wednesday morning following heavy rain early in the morning. The flooding was due to overflow from neighboring Murung Raya regency.

The North Barito BPBD was still gathering data on the impacted areas and number of residents affected, Agus said. He added that most of the residents had evacuated to the houses of relatives and neighbors.

The Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) predicted that some regions in Indonesia would be hit by heavy rain caused by the transitional period from the rainy season to the dry season in Indonesia.

"Heavy rain with thunderstorms will happen in the week ahead," the acting Meteorology Deputy Herizal said on Tuesday as reported by kompas.com, recommending that residents be prepared for disasters that might come with heavy rain – floods, landslides and storms.