335 New Houses Prepared To Accommodate West Sumatra Flash Flood Victims

President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) when he met refugees who were victims of the flash flood disaster in Agam Regency, West Sumatra (doc BNPB)

JAKARTA - The National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB) has confirmed that as many as 335 new disaster-resistant housing units have been prepared for victims of the cold lava flood of Mount Marapi in West Sumatra (West Sumatra).

Head of the BNPB Disaster Data, Information and Communication Center Abdul Muhari said that the house is a simple, healthy instant (Risha) house that was prepared to cooperate with the Ministry of Public Works and Public Housing (PUPR). Risha's house is one of the houses with a building design that is resistant to disasters that are generally like earthquakes. Therefore, BNPB assessed that its existence is ideal to be occupied by affected residents in West Sumatra who are prone to disasters. 100 hectares and Tanah Datar Regency, covering an area of 10 hectares. "But the data collection process is still ongoing. So far in Agam Regency, 100 families have stated that they are ready to be relocated to occupy the prepared house," he said. He ensured, the relocation option to occupy the new home was prioritized to residents directly affected by the cold lava flood disaster Mount Marapi, on Saturday last week. Safety is the main reason why the victims had to be relocated from their previous residence by the government. Otherwise, he said, it is certain that they would experience the same thing at a later date if they still occupy the commensurate river flow in Mount Marapi.

Not only that, he explained, the government agreed to build 56 units of Sabo Dam on the upstream river flow on Mount Marapi, the work started this year. Sabo Dam is a dam infrastructure that is able to withstand volcanic material Mount Marapi does not flow downstream towards residential areas, so as to reduce the potential danger of cold lava floods in West Sumatra.