20 Houses Of Residents Of The Taulud Islands Of North Sulawesi Damaged By Strong Winds

Houses damaged by strong winds in the Sangihe Islands (Photo: BNPB documentation)

JAKARTA - Strong winds hit the Talaud Islands Regency, North Sulawesi Province on Friday, September 17 at around 14.20 WIB. This strong wind damaged 20 houses.

Plt. Head of the BNPB Disaster Data, Information and Communication Center, Abdul Muhari, said the strong winds were caused by extreme weather phenomena that coincided with heavy rains.

"A total of 20 housing units were damaged with mild to moderate damage. These strong winds did not result in any casualties or injuries", said Abdul Muhari in his statement, Saturday, September 18.

Abdul Muhari explained, the majority of houses suffered minor damage, namely 19 houses. Meanwhile, 1 house was moderately damaged. Most of the houses damaged occurred on the roof due to strong winds.

Other houses were damaged by falling trees. The areas affected by the strong winds are in three sub-districts, namely Melonguane, Lirung, and South Beo sub-districts.

"After the incident, residents who were assisted by local BPBD officers worked together to clean up building materials that were blown by the wind. BPBD officers also coordinated with related parties to collect damage data in the field", he said.

Abdul Muhari continued, during the five-year period, 2015–2020, strong winds were recorded only once, on October 20, 2020. At that time, strong winds damaged eight houses. The affected area is located in South Essang District.

"Avoiding the danger of strong winds, the public is advised to take shelter in sturdy buildings and not under trees or billboards. In addition, the community can work together to cut tree branches in the vicinity to anticipate falling trees due to strong winds. as well as a load of water when it rains", he concluded.