Drought Alert, BMKG Predicts 6 Districts In NTT Without Rain For 61 Days

Illustration - Dry agricultural land during the dry season in Kupang Regency, NTT. (ANTARA-Aloysius Lewokeda)

NTT - The Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) predicts six sub-districts in the East Nusa Tenggara (NTT) region without rain for a maximum of 61 days.

"Regions threatened by drought have experienced more than 61 days without rain, with a chance of over 70 percent," said BMKG Kupang Class II Climatology Station Head Rahmattulloh Adji in his statement, quoted from Antara, Wednesday, August 24.

The six sub-districts include Kota Raja and Oebobo sub-districts in Kupang City; Northwest Rote District in Rote Ndao District; Hawu Mehara and Raijua Districts in Sabu Raijua District; and Haharu District in East Sumba Regency.

Rahmattulloh appealed to residents in the six sub-districts to be aware of the impact of the drought. He asked them to increase their awareness of the threat of drought, such as in the agricultural sector with a rain-fed system.

In addition, he continued, the reduced availability of ground water can lead to water scarcity, as well as the potential for fires to occur.

He advised farmers to prioritize planting activities on plants that do not require a lot of water so that they have the opportunity to produce yields to be harvested.

The community, he said, also needs to avoid activities that can trigger forest and land fires because they can spread quickly during the dry season.

"Anticipation efforts need to be carried out appropriately to minimize the impact of losses due to drought," he said.