The 2007 Jakarta flood was a major flood in

Jakarta Jakarta (; , Betawi language, Betawi: ''Jakartè''), officially the Special Capital Region of Jakarta (; ''DKI Jakarta'') and formerly known as Batavia, Dutch East Indies, Batavia until 1949, is the capital and largest city of Indonesia and ...

, the capital of

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...

and affected several other areas around the city, such as

West Java West Java (, ) is an Indonesian Provinces of Indonesia, province on the western part of the island of Java, with its provincial capital in Bandung. West Java is bordered by the province of Banten and the country's capital region of Jakarta to t ...

and

Banten Banten (, , Pegon alphabet, Pegon: بنتن) is the westernmost Provinces of Indonesia, province on the island of Java, Indonesia. Its capital city is Serang and its largest city is Tangerang. The province borders West Java and the Special Capi ...

. The flood, beginning on February 2, 2007 was a result of heavy rain,

deforestation Deforestation or forest clearance is the removal and destruction of a forest or stand of trees from land that is then converted to non-forest use. Deforestation can involve conversion of forest land to farms, ranches, or urban use. Ab ...

in areas south of the city, and waterways clogged with debris. The flood is considered the worst in the last three centuries, including the 1996 and 2002 Jakarta floods, which killed 10 and 25 people respectively. The final official death toll was 80.

Causes

Meteorological

The most significant reason of the disaster is the high rate of rain, since the

rainy season The rainy season is the time of year when most of a region's average annual rainfall occurs. Rainy Season may also refer to: * ''Rainy Season'' (short story), a 1989 short horror story by Stephen King * "Rainy Season", a 2018 song by Monni * '' ...

in Indonesia starts in December and ends in March. In 2007, the rain intensity reached its peak in February, with the greatest intensity towards the first of the month.

Geographical

Uncontrolled population growth in urban areas, poor land use planning, and the lack of understanding among city residents and government about floods and its disaster risk are key factors in Jakarta's situation. Eventually, water flowing into Jakarta overflows some of the city's flood control systems and causes devastation in these areas.

Impact

The flood affected 80 separate regions in and around Jakarta, and over 70,000 homes were flooded, resulting in the displacement of some 500,000 people.Jakarta Flood Disaster Relief - Progress Report
- www.standardnewswire.com - Obtained March 11, 2007. There was a high level of illness, with 1,066 patients treated by hospitals due to

diarrhea Diarrhea (American English), also spelled diarrhoea or diarrhœa (British English), is the condition of having at least three loose, liquid, or watery bowel movements in a day. It often lasts for a few days and can result in dehydration d ...

and 329 due to

dengue fever Dengue fever is a mosquito-borne disease caused by dengue virus, prevalent in tropical and subtropical areas. Asymptomatic infections are uncommon, mild cases happen frequently; if symptoms appear, they typically begin 3 to 14 days after i ...

. The flood has caused Rp 8 trillion (US$879.12 million) in losses. Approximately 190,000 people were affected by flood related illnesses. The nature of the flood in which it extends from riverbanks to surrounding areas has caused the lower-class communities, many of which live on the riverbanks themselves in wooden houses, to take the strongest impact of the flood.

Aid

Aid was provided through numerous organisations, both

non-governmental A non-governmental organization (NGO) is an independent, typically nonprofit organization that operates outside government control, though it may get a significant percentage of its funding from government or corporate sources. NGOs often focus ...

and governmental. Some notable organisations that provided assistance include: * HOPE Worldwide - distributed 5 metric ton (11,000 lbs) of food, water, medicines, clean up kits to 10,000 people. * Mercy Relief (Through local NGO ARUS) - provided $67,000 worth of aid supplies to the flood victims. These included 1,650 boxes of milk powder, $5,000 worth of medical supplies, 2,800 bottles of vitamin syrup, two units of glucometer sets, 2,800 sets of uniform and 1,000 school bags. *

Australian Government The Australian Government, also known as the Commonwealth Government or simply as the federal government, is the national executive government of Australia, a federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy. The executive consists of the pr ...

- provided $150,000 AUD to the Indonesian Red Cross, to purchase emergency food parcels and hygiene kits, as well as assisting in the rebuilding efforts. *

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

- Through the United Nations World Food Programme dispatched an initial shipment of 526 boxes of micronutrient-enriched noodles and 702 boxes of high energy biscuits for 2,250 flood victims in south Jakarta.

References

External links

Jakarta Flood 2007
at WN
Pictures of flood on BBC News siteBBC radio interview with Jakarta-based blogger
{{DEFAULTSORT:2007 Jakarta Flood

Jakarta Flood, 2007 2000s in Jakarta Floods in Jakarta February 2007 in Indonesia