TENS OF HOUSES INUNDATED IN PURWOKERTO

Purwokerto, June 4 (ANTARA) - Tens of houses were inundated at Karangpucung, South Cilacap sub district, Banyumas District, Central Java, early Thursday as a river flowing in the area overflowed.

Heavy rains had fallen in Purwokerto incessantly since Wednesday evening and triggered the flooding, Sutarno, a local resident, said here on Thursday.

"Flash floods often occur here, but this time the flood is quite serious that it inundated tens of houses," he said.

Kasim, also a local inhabitant, said the flood submerging his house reached a height of up to almost one meter.

He said he never thought that the flood would inundate his house.

"Usually only my front yard is inundated, but this time the floodwater enters my home," he said.

A number of flood victims were forced to evacuate themselves to higher ground.

Meanwhile, flood had inundated hundreds of houses at Baleendah, Bandung District, West Java Province, as Citarum river overflew, last Wednesday (June 3).

Some local residents were surprised that rains still fell until early June.

"There is usually no more flood in May, and it was hardly flood in transitional season. But surprisingly it happens until June," Wahlan, a resident of Cieunteung Baleendah.

Local people had actually felt relief that there had been no rains in southern Bandung in the last two weeks.

The inundation forced local resident to evacuate their vehicles to higher ground.

"I don't know how many times we have been inundated, it is more than ten times. In that case, we are forced to move our vehicles to a higher location," he said.

The flood also submerged Merkasari elementary school at Cieunteung kampong, forcing the students to stay at home.

The floodwaters reached a height of between 50 centimeters and one meter, he said. The flood cut off a one-kilometer long at Cieunteung, he said.