Heavy Rainfall, Flooding Submerged Several Areas of Kudus Regency

Illustration of flooding (Photo: dok. Antara)

Kudus - Kudus Regency, Central Java, experienced flooding in a number of areas, inundating residential areas, road access and a number of public facilities, after heavy rains fell.

According to the Acting Head of the Kudus Regional Disaster Management Agency (BPBD), Eko Hari Djatmiko, the flood caused six residents' houses in Singocandi Village to be flooded, after the retaining wall between the housing and the Gelis River was damaged, considering that the river's water discharge also increased on Friday (9/1) night.

In addition, he said, heavy rain that flooded the area caused the bridge before the entrance to Colo Tourism, Colo Village, Dawe District, Kudus Regency, to be damaged.

"Floods also occurred in Mejobo District, starting from Golantepus Village, Temulus, to Kesambi with a puddle reaching 50 centimeters," he said, quoting Antara.

On Friday (9/1) evening, he said, the East Pantura Road Kudus-Pati was also flooded, but now the puddles are starting to recede, so the traffic flow is back to normal.

Likewise, the flood that occurred in Singocandi Village, he said, also began to recede on Friday (9/1) at 23.00 WIB.

Kasat Samapta of the Kudus Police, AKP Noor Alifi, admitted that he and the Kudus City Police on Friday (9/1) night conducted a direct inspection at the location. The overflow of the Gelis River occurred in Singocandi RT 8 RW 3 Village.

The increased water discharge caused the retaining wall between the Singocandi Housing and the Gelis River to collapse along about 3 meters with a height of 2 meters, resulting in six residents' houses being flooded with water up to 1 meter.

A total of six families were affected and were forced to temporarily move to the nearest neighbor's house to avoid further risks.

In addition to Singocandi, the increase in the flow of the Gelis River was also observed at a number of other points, including Dukuh Kuanaran, Kajeksan Village, the Taman Siswa Bridge area, Singocandi Village and Demaan Village, Demangan Village, Demaan RT 4 RW 5, and Sunggingan Village.

"Even though the water discharge increased, the condition of the residents' settlement at the location is still monitored safely. In Demangan Village, RT 1 RW 3, the increase in water discharge caused the road along the Gelis River to be eroded and potholed along about 10 meters with a width of 1.5 meters," he said.

Head of Traffic Police at the Kudus Police, AKP Royke Noldy Darean, admitted that on Friday (9/1) evening, access to the road on the East Pantura Road Kudus-Pati was hampered by flooding, considering the accumulation of garbage on the Ngembal Bridge, so that the water overflowed into the road.

"Today, since 01.00 WIB, access to the road has been smooth again, because the garbage has been taken by the relevant agencies," he said.

However, he reminded road users to remain cautious to avoid unwanted things.