Floods inundate over 1000 houses in Indonesia

Floods have submerged a total of 1,157 houses in Laren and Babat Sub-districts, Lamongan District, East Java Province since Tuesday, as Bengawan Solo River overflowed. In Laren alone, 613 houses in nine villages were flooded, ANTARA quoted the spokesman of the Lamongan district administration, Mohammad Zamroni, as saying on Wednesday. Some 544 houses in three villages in Babat were also inundated, according to data of the Lamongan disaster mitigation office (BPBD). The Lamongan authorities are monitoring the flooding reaching a height of up to 40 cm, Zamroni said. In Gresik District, East Java Province, hundreds of houses have been flooded in Bungah and Dukun Sub-districts due to the overflowing Bengawan Solo River. The floodwaters reached a height of between 40 cm and 50 cm, Tosikin, the head of Dukun Sub-district, said in Gresik, on Wednesday. The two sub-districts are flooded almost every year because Bengawan Solo River passes these areas when flowing downstream. Floods have also hit Sampang, Madura Island, East Java, over the past three days, and killed five people. Head of the Sampang Disaster Mitigation Office (BPBD) Imam Sanusi said 14 villages in Sampang were flooded and five people including a teacher were swept away by the water current. Thousands of houses and public facilities such as schools and tens of hectares of rice fields were submerged under water in Sampang Sub-district. Coordinating Minister for People's Welfare Agung Laksono has urged people to be on alert for flooding as rains still frequently fall despite the transition period from rainy season to dry season. "Floods and landslides are still occurring, therefore people living in flood-prone areas in particular must remain on alert," the minister said here on Tuesday. The National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) has reported that a number of regions throughout Indonesia were flooded due to incessant heavy rains lately.