The Minister Of Public Works Asked For Balai In West Sumatra To Handle Damaged Infrastructure Due To Floods And Landslides

JAKARTA - Minister of Public Works (PU) Dody Hanggodo instructed all technical units of the Ministry of Public Works to go directly to the field in dealing with landslides and floods that hit a number of areas in West Sumatra Province due to extreme rain on November 23-25, 2025.

Dody wants the technical unit to ensure that emergency handling takes place as quickly as possible.

This is as directed by President Prabowo Subianto regarding the importance of handling disasters quickly, precisely and thoroughly.

Following up on Prabowo's directive, Dody said that the Ministry of Public Works' commitment to ensuring emergency handling is carried out as quickly as possible.

"The Ministry of Public Works has instructed all centers in West Sumatra to move quickly and be present at the location. Our focus is to reopen main access, ensure the function of raw water and drainage infrastructure and provide support for basic facilities for the community. Public safety is a top priority," said Dody in his official statement, quoted Friday, November 28.

He guaranteed that the government would continue to be present until all affected infrastructure recovers. After the emergency response stage, the rehabilitation and reconstruction process will be prepared according to technical needs in the field.

"The Ministry of Public Works ensures that all infrastructure is damaged and will receive handling according to technical needs. The government is fully present to ensure that people can return to their activities safely," he said.

Head of the West Sumatra National Road Implementation Center (BPJN) Elsa Putra Friandi explained that the landslide material closed the road on the Padang 'Bukittinggi national section to be one of the most significant impacts of this extreme weather.

He said that conditions in the Anai Valley area had made the route impassable.

"The Padang Road Access was cut off by landslides in the Anai Valley area. The landslide blocked the road, so it could not be passed. Currently, we are doing the handling and cleaning. Last night we have handled one point, but this morning there was another landslide and there were several additional location points," he explained.

The Sumatra V River Basin Center (BWS) report also shows very high intensity of rain, including 212 mm/day at the Anai watershed, causing overflowing rivers, floods, sedimentation and landslides in Padang Pariaman, Padang City, Solok Regency, Tanah Datar, Agam, Pesisir Selatan and Pasaman Barat.

A number of PDAM intakes were also disrupted due to the accumulation of sediments, houses and agricultural land inundated as well as access to affected settlements and public facilities.

Meanwhile, Head of the Sumatra River Basin Center (BWS) V Naryo Widodo explained that his party had deployed heavy equipment and technical assistance to various affected locations.

For example, long arm excavators to handle sediments in PDAM in the Kuranji River/Batang and send gabions assistance to the Solok and Tanah Datar areas.

"We are also preparing further handling in the form of river normalization, formation of flow and proposals for the construction of flood control structures according to the existing master plan," he explained.

Selain pemulihan akses dan pengamanan infrastruktur sungai, Kementerian PU melalui Balai Penataan Bangunan, Prasarana dan Kawasan (BPBPK) Sumatera Barat juga memberikan dukungan berupa sarana prasarana dasar bagi masyarakat terdampak.

Sarana prasarana itu di antaranya dua unit toilet portable di lokasi terdampak serta dua unit hunian umum (HU) dikirimkan ke SMP 44 Kecamatan Pauh, Kota Padang, yang saat ini difungsikan sebagai tempat penampungan sementara.

In addition to restoring access and securing river infrastructure, the Ministry of Public Works through the West Sumatra Building, Infrastructure and Area Planning Center (BPBPK) also provides support in the form of basic infrastructure facilities for affected communities.

The infrastructure facilities include two portable toilet units in affected locations and two public residential units (HU) sent to SMP 44 Pauh District, Padang City, which is currently functioned as temporary shelters.