Indonesia: Death toll from Jakarta flooding rises to 60

By Jeyhun Aliyev

ANKARA (AA) - The death toll from severe flooding and landslides that struck the Indonesian capital Jakarta over the New Year rose to 60, the state-run disaster management authority said Sunday.

The capital city of Jakarta, West Java province and the western province of Banten on the island of Java have been the most affected by the flooding and landslides, the Indonesian National Disaster Management Agency (BNDP) said in a written statement.

Sharing the latest figures on the fourth day of the disaster, the BNDP said two people remained missing in the Lebak region in Banten.

Following recovery efforts, the number of flood victims in temporary shelters dropped from 173,064 to 92,261 people, it added.

The statement also underlined that cleaning, maintenance and repair were underway in a large area where floods and landslides had struck, noting that 1,432 personnel were involved in emergency works.

Earlier on Friday, BNDP spokesman Agus Wibowo told reporters that the deaths had been mainly caused by hypothermia, drowning, electric shocks and landslides.

The country's Meteorology and Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) predicted that heavy rains would continue to hit Jakarta and nearby towns until Jan. 10.

A total of 169 areas across Indonesia were reported on Wednesday to have been overwhelmed by floods, with 63 in Jakarta, 97 in West Java and nine regions affected in the western Banten province.

The BMKG recorded rainfall intensity on New Year's Eve at 377 millimeters (15 inches) per day, the highest since 2007 when it reached 340 mm per day.

Located in the equatorial belt, Indonesia with its tropical climate often suffers flash floods and landslides, mainly triggered by monsoon rainfall between October and April.