Serang Floods; 5 Deaths, 3,960 Houses Submerged

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Floods hit 12 sub-districts and 22 villages of Banten Province following extreme rainfall on Monday night, Feb. 28, until Tuesday afternoon, March 1. As a result, 3,960 houses were inundated and 700 residents were forced to be evacuated.

“And five people died from the floods,” said Banten Police Head of Public Relations Commissioner Shinto Silitonga in his office, Wednesday, March 2.

The flood also caused 2,203 houses in five sub-districts of Serang City to be submerged, namely Kasemen, Serang, Cipocok Jaya, Taktakan, and Curug districts.

In Pandeglang Regency, 1,757 houses in 17 villages were also affected. They spread in Labuan, Cadasari, Patia, Saketi, Pandeglang, Mandalawangi, and Pulosari sub-districts.

The regional police had also deployed 511 personnel. “The equipment used to evacuate the victims included two double cabins, one bus, one ambulance, two rubber boats, and other search and rescue (SAR) equipment. Healthcare officers of Banten Police [are also mobilized] for the community to provide medicines and vitamins,” Shinto added.

The Banten Police had set up several evacuation tents and public kitchens for the evacuees.

“There is one house destroyed by the flood in Legok and two houses in Kasemen are carried away by the river current, which then goes viral on social media,” Shinto said of floods in Serang.

Read: Over 6,000 Families Evacuated after Floods in Pamekasan: BPBD

JONIANSYAH (CONTRIBUTOR)