It's Been 4 Days Since The Trans Sulawesi Road In Kapukku Has Been Cut Off, West Sulawesi PUPR Asks For Heavy Equipment Assistance

Trans Sulawesi Street in Kalukku District, Mamuju Regency, West Sulawesi, was covered by landslides. (Between-M Faisal H)

SULBAR - Jalan Trans Sulawesi was covered by landslides at a number of points in the Kalukku District, Mamuju Regency, West Sulawesi Province (Sulbar).

Head of the Public Works and Public Settlements (PUPR) of West Sulawesi Province, M Aksan, said that it had been three days since the road connecting the capital Mamuju to Mamasa Regency had been cut off due to landslides.

"A total of 13 landslides have cut off the trans-Sulawesi route from Mamuju to Mamasa as a result of flash floods and heavy rains that hit the Kalukku District, Mamuju Regency, occurred on October 11 at around 14.00 WITA," said Aksan, in Mamuju, West Sulawesi, quoted from Antara, Thursday, October 14.

He said the landslides that occurred were found at a number of points in the Sondoang Village area, Keang Village, and a number of other villages in the area that connects Mamuju-Mamasala.

"The axis cannot be passed by traffic flow, and the community can only walk up to 10 kilometers if there is an urgent need, because the vehicle cannot pass at all," he said.

According to him, the West Sulawesi Provincial PUPR Service has deployed four units of heavy equipment to start working to clean up landslides that closed the trans Sulawesi road so that it could be passed by the community again.

"However, due to landslides accompanied by large stones and soil, it makes it difficult for existing heavy equipment to work to get rid of piles of landslides that fell from the top of the mountain," he said.

Therefore, he said, his party had asked for additional heavy equipment from all regencies in West Sulawesi to work together to get rid of the landslide material that occurred.

"Additional heavy equipment has gone to the location to clean up the landslide and is expected to work quickly so that the road can be opened again for the community to pass," he said.

Based on BPBD data from West Sulawesi Province, as many as eight houses were reported to have swept away in a number of villages in Kalukku District, including four houses washed away in Sondoang Village.

In addition, three houses were swept away in South Sinyonyoi Village, then one house was swept away and one was buried and three power poles fell in Pammulukan Village.

West Sulawesi BPBD also noted a number of schools, health centers and village offices and a number of other public services, then houses of worship affected by the flood.

Floods also cut off road access for a number of villages and damaged plantation and agricultural areas of the community. Based on temporary data from the government in Mamuju, at least 1,625 houses were affected by the flood and were temporarily damaged by around 5,271 people in the handling of the Mamuju government as refugees.