TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - As the rainy season comes, threats of landslides and flash floods increase. Adirin Tohari, a researcher from the Research Center for Geo-technology at the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI) in Bandung, said that flash floods and landslides can be detected before it occurs.
Adrin explained that there are four indications of a flash flood about to occur. The first indication is a significant reduction in a river's flow, which is a result of massive dirt clogging caused by a landslide. "Then suddenly the water level rises dramatically while the flow also accelerates rapidly," Adrin said on Thursday, September 22, 2016.
Another sign of an impending flash flood is that when the color of a river turns muddy because water had mixed with dirt. "And then, there will be a thundering sound coming from upstream. That is the sounds of tree logs, branches, stones, being flowed through the river." Adrin explained.
Adrin added that flash flood can also be detected by installing an early warning system such as rain intensity measuring device, wire extensometer, and CCTVs in several areas of the river. "The data of the observation would then be sent and analyzed by a [Regional Disaster Management Agency] team working together with [the Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency] and other relevant agencies. Sirens should also be installed in a high risk location," Adrin added.
ANWAR SISWADI
