Heavy rains force 6,000 Indonesians to flee homes

By Ainur Rohmah

TUBAN, Indonesia (AA) - Floods triggered by torrential rains forced thousands of people to flee their homes on Indonesia’s Sulawesi island late Thursday, an official said.

National Disaster Management Agency spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho told Anadolu Agency on Friday that overnight rains had resulted in flooding in three cities of North Sulawesi province.

“The long heavy rains in the region of North Sulawesi have caused flooding in some areas such as Manado City, North Gorontalo District and Bitung City,” he said.

Around 2,000 homes were flooded, causing more than 6,000 residents to evacuate to mosques and relatives’ homes.

“Until now, there has been no report of casualties due to floods and landslides,” Nugroho said. The agency urged people to be especially vigilant over the next few weeks as the region experiences its annual rainfall peak and natural disasters are most common.

Seasonal rains often cause flooding and landslides in Indonesia, a chain of 17,000 islands where millions of people live in mountainous areas or flood-prone plains close to rivers.

At least 1,985 disasters occurred during 2016, killing 375 people -- the highest level for 10 years.