Floods Inundate Residents' Settlements In Windesi Teluk Wondama, West Papua

The village, Teluk Wondama, has been inundated by floods since Thursday (19/5/2022) evening. (ANTARA/HO-Zack Tonu B)

WASIOR - Dozens of houses in Windesi Village, Windesi District, Teluk Wondama Regency, West Papua were reported to be flooded due to heavy rains since Thursday, May 19.

The head of the Windesi District, Moses Windesi, said that the flooding that inundated people's houses, neighborhood roads and villages was caused by the overflow of the Wariowi River.

"As of Friday evening, the water that has flooded the residents' houses has receded," said Moses, quoted by Antara, Friday, May 20.

According to him, the flood that hit Windesi Village was the second after the previous week the village was also flooded.

Until now, the residents of Windesi Village are still haunted by a sense of anxiety considering the rain is still falling in their area. Meanwhile, almost all of the embankments on the left and right of the river have been damaged due to age.

“The source is an overflowing river. There are three rivers or streams that meet into one, namely Kali Wariowi, Wamesandawi and Masasopi. So the embankment at that time was broken because not all of it (the dike was installed). It's only at the top, so the water goes through it," explained Moses.

The flood that hit Windesi Village and also Central Wamesa Village has become a recurring event. Almost every year the houses of local residents are flooded.

Local residents urged the Teluk Wondama Regency Government to immediately repair damaged river embankments or normalize rivers.

Moses said his staff had repeatedly proposed the river embankment normalization program in the area through district development planning discussions (musrenbang), but until now this has never been realized by the relevant agencies.

"Officers from BPBD have gone down to the field distributing food aid to affected residents. However, the main thing that must be of special concern is the safety of the people in Windesi Village, who have been living under threat, especially during the rainy season," he said.

He added that the river normalization program is urgent to be handled so that the area is no longer hit by floods every year.

"There must be immediate repair of the embankment and dredging because the material is full so that people feel comfortable. This is the longing of the community because it has been repeatedly conveyed," said Moses.

Meanwhile, the Head of BPBD Teluk Wondama Aser Waroi said that his party had taken emergency response steps in the form of providing basic food assistance to affected residents.

"We have distributed basic food assistance as an emergency response step. But in the long term, there must be handling of the river which is the source of flooding," said Waroi.