Landslides And Floods Hit Ambon Due To Heavy Rain

JAKARTA - Ambon City was again rocked by natural disasters after heavy rains flushed the area for two consecutive days.

This high rainfall caused a number of points in the city to experience landslides and floods, triggering residents' concerns even though there have been no official reports of injuries or losses.

One of the residents of Karangpanjang Village, Sirimau District, Frengky M, said that landslides occurred next to his house.

"Since yesterday it rained non-stop, and tonight there was a talud avalanche right near my house. Fortunately, no one was injured, even though the walls of the neighbor's house were hit by landslide material," he was quoted as saying by ANTARA.

From the results of field monitoring, fallen trees were also reported in the Batupangan area. The incident hit the house belonging to the Romer family and caused one death, a resident named Albert, on Saturday night, June 21. Meanwhile, landslides were also reported to have occurred in the Kezia area, Nusaniwe District.

River overflows also caused flooding in several locations, including in the Ambon State Islamic Institute (IAIN) area in Sirimau District and the Small Hative area. As a result, many residents' houses were inundated and residents were forced to flee to places that were considered safer.

A number of main roads in Ambon were paralyzed due to high standing water. Some of them are Jalan AY Patty, Jalan Baru, Perigi Lima, as well as the Waehaong and Passo areas in Baguala District. Traffic is badly disrupted and community activities are hampered.

The Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) of the Pattimura Class II Meteorological Station Ambon has previously issued an early warning regarding the potential for heavy rain accompanied by strong winds and lightning. BMKG urges people in the areas of Ambon, Buru, South Buru, Central Maluku, West and East Seram, Southeast Maluku, Tanimbar Islands, and Southwest Maluku to remain alert to potential natural disasters.

The BMKG analysis shows that this extreme weather is affected by a number of meteorological factors, including wind encounters that trigger the formation of rain clouds, high sea surface temperatures (28-32$C), as well as Rossby wave activity and high humidity in the upper layers of the atmosphere. In addition, the Maluku region has now entered the rainy season.

Responding to this condition, a member of Commission III of the Maluku DPRD, Allan Lohy, expressed his commitment to immediately follow up on reports of infrastructure damage due to disasters.

"If there are official reports regarding road damage that disrupt residents' activities, including the safety of road users and the smooth running of the economy, we will immediately coordinate with the relevant agencies so that they can be handled immediately," he said.