68 killed, thousands displaced in South Sulawesi floods, Indonesia (UPDATE)

The Jakarta Post
Wed, 23 Jan 2019 12:40 UTC

© Antara/Abriawan Abhe

Residents try to hold on to a house that is being carried away by floodwater from the overflowing Jenebarang River in Gowa, South Sulawesi, on Jan. 22.

Six people died and 10 went missing in a flood that hit Makassar City and six other districts in South Sulawesi on Tuesday.

The previous day, dozens of houses and several bridges were destroyed hours after torrential rainfall hit.

The six people were from Gowa district, which was inundated because of rising water levels in the Jenebarang River.

Gowa Regent Adnan Purichta Ichsan said some of the victims died because of electric shock while others were buried by landslides.

"We are continuing to evacuate and assist residents affected by the flood," he said as quoted by Antara.

The regent said as of Wednesday morning that the flood had displaced at least 2,121 people.

Aside from Gowa and Makassar City, the floods hit Takalar, Jeneponto, Maros, Pangkep and Barru regencies.

Jihadul Arifin, a resident of the Antang housing complex in Makassar City, said he did not have time to secure his valuable belongings because the floods came quickly and inundated the area.

He said the flood was a result of an overflow of water in Gowa regency after the opening of Bili-Bili Dam's sluice gate.

"We have not had the chance to secure it because the water was immediately high," he said on Wednesday.

He added that the flood was not like the previous year's floods because it came suddenly, hitting the backs of residential houses and reaching heights as high as some roofs.

Comment: Update: Channel News Asia on the 24th of January reports:

The death toll from flash floods and landslides in Indonesia jumped to 26, a disaster agency official said Thursday (Jan 24), as rescuers race to find still-missing victims.

Thousands have been evacuated from their homes as heavy rain and strong winds pounded the southern part of Sulawesi island, swelling rivers that burst their banks and inundating dozens of communities in nine southern districts.

Parts of the provincial capital Makassar have also been affected.

"As of this morning, 26 people are confirmed to have died and 24 others are missing," said Syamsibar, the head of the local disaster mitigation agency, who like many Indonesians goes by one name.

The death toll had stood at eight on Wednesday.

More than 3,000 people have been evacuated and at least 46 are being treated at local hospitals and health clinics.

The floods also damaged houses, government buildings, schools and bridges.

"The search and rescue teams are still looking for missing victims and evacuating people whose homes were inundated by the flooding," Syamsibar said.

Landslides and flooding are common in Indonesia, especially during the monsoon season between October and April, when rain lashes the vast tropical archipelago.

In October, flash floods and landslides killed at least 22 people in several districts across Sumatra island.

Source: AFP

Update: Xinhua on the 27th of January reports:

The death toll from floods, landslides and whirlwind in Indonesia's Central Sulawesi province jumped to 68 on Sunday with 47 others sustaining wounds, spokesman of the national disaster management agency Sutopo Purwo Nugroho said.