Residents flee as floods ruin crops, homes, villages along Bojonegoro river

Tuesday, April 24, 2007
ID Nugroho, The Jakarta Post, Bojonegoro

Residents of Bojonegoro, East Java, and Cepu, Central Java, are bracing themselves for more floods after four days of rain caused the Bengawan Solo River to overflow, inundating thousands of hectares of rice paddies and homes.

Hundreds have been forced to take refuge on higher ground, while others are living in makeshift tents along the Bojonegoro-Cepu highway.

Flood water levels in Bojonegoro are estimated at between 30 cm and 100 cm.

The water has flooded rice paddies, soccer fields and homes as well as village roads. The worst-affected area is Kalitidu district, Bojonegoro, especially in the Cengungklung and Manukan subdistricts, where entire villages are underwater.

The water has cut access to the area. Residents have used rafts and banana tree trunks to get to their homes and salvage their belongings.

Many residents also rescued their animals.

"We saved our livestock when the road was still passable," said Trimo, a resident of Cengungklung, on Sunday evening.

Floods are an annual occurrence in Bojonegoro. The Bengawan Solo River, the longest in Java, regularly overflows.

In 2006 floods hit 14 districts, with an average depth of one meter. The worst-hit areas were Ledok Kulon and Ledok Wetan.

Reports say the Bojonegoro regency administration is attempting to control the floods by dividing the flow of the river in Sedayu, although it has had little effect so far.

Sidik, a Bojonegoro resident, said the rice field on which he and his family depended for their livelihood was at risk.

"My crops should have been bearing grain now, especially because I spread fertilizer before the floods. But everything has apparently been destroyed," he said.

He said he was likely to lose around Rp 6 million, a substantial sum of money for him, although he said his family would be able to live off the earnings from the small stall they also run.

"Well, the earnings are meager, but the main thing is that we can still eat," he said.

Trimo, who lives along the riverbank, said he faced a similar situation and that he did not expect the floods to subside soon.

"I was happy when they separated the river flow, because my village never flooded after they made the new artery. But the volume of water in the river has increased," he said.

On Friday, however, the river suddenly burst its banks and quickly flooded local roads.

Residents living along the river panicked, packing their belongings and evacuating their livestock when the water reached knee height.

"We were afraid the floods cannot be controlled because we heard that Cepu had already been flooded," said Trimo.

Fortunately, no victims were reported, but water levels have reached up to 1.5 meters, raising the number of evacuees.

"I'm still afraid if I hear thunder. I fear that rain will fall again, the river will overflow and the village will be flooded again," said Trimo.

The floodwaters had not subsided as of Sunday night, while rain was still falling on the border areas between East and Central Java.