FLOODS INUNDATE 472 HOUSES IN LAMONGAN

Surabaya, East Java, Feb. 6 (ANTARA) - Floods have inundated 472 houses and a mosque in Lamongan District, East Java Province.

The floods waters also submerged 123 hectares of crops fields and 34 hectares of rice fields, Aris Wibawa, a spokesman of the Lamongan District administration said in a press statement here on Thursday.
"Until now, we are still collecting data to know the material losses inflicted by the natural disaster," Wibawa said.
The worst flood-affected sub districts are Laren, where 230 houses are flooded, Babat (175 houses), Karangbinangun (54 houses) and Glagah (13 houses).
In Kalitengah sub districts, about 104 hectares of crops fields and 34 hectares of paddy fields are flooded.
The Lamongan authorities had sent relief aid consisting among other things of rice and other staple foods to help flood victims, he said.
The current rainy season has triggered floods and landslides in various parts of Indonesia, including in East Java, Central Java, West Java, South Sulawesi, East Kalimantan, and Aceh provinces.
La Nina, which is developing into Northern Hemisphere Spring 2009, is expected to cause above-average precipitation over Indonesia, during January-March 2009, according to the US NOAA's Climate Prediction Center (CPC) recently.