Basarnas And SAR Team Deployed To Evacuate Residents Trapped In Flood In South Kalimantan

The Sar and Basarnas team picked up residents who were trapped in the flood. (Fathurrahamn / Antara)

JAKARTA - Members of Basarnas and SAR Teams from various regions have begun to be deployed to evacuate residents who are still trapped in floods in Hulu Sungai Tengah Regency (HST), South Kalimantan.

Since the flood occurred on Tuesday, January 11, until Friday, January 15 morning, many residents were still trapped in the flood and had to stay on roofs of their houses, because they had not yet received help.

Monitoring by Antara Kalsel journalist Fathurrahman who was also affected by the flood reported that since Friday morning, the SAR team and Basarnas, came to the houses of residents who were trapped in the flood one by one, to be taken to safer evacuation locations.

Many residents, who are now forced to protect themselves from flooding on roofs of houses by enduring the cold due to the rain.

Quite a number of SAR team members were deployed, even from various regions also arriving, as well as the Basarnas team, which continued to pick up residents affected by the flood by rubber boats.

However, because the flood that occurred was quite extensive, the number of people affected was also quite large, so residents also had to be patient waiting for their turn to evacuate.

Meanwhile, residents are also starting to open posts independently to help flood victims who are in refugee camps. Almost all the time, the refugees' food needs are met by the posts opened by residents.

Food, from packaged rice, pastries, instant noodles, bread and various drinks, kept coming to the refugees.

Floods in Hulu Sungai Tengah Regency are still spreading, the water has yet to show signs of receding, it is even rising.

The roads have changed like an ocean with quite a swift current, so road access is very difficult to pass.

Electricity, PDAM and telecommunication networks were disrupted. Many shopping centers, offices and banks, especially in Barabai City, the capital of Hulu Sungai Tengah Regency, are closed.

"Barabai is truly like a city of the dead, completely paralyzed," said Fathur.