Lebih 30, Korban Tewas Banjir Bandang Luwu Utara
Indonesia Flash Flooding Death Toll Rises to More than 30
Editor : Ismail Gani
Translator : Novita Cahyadi
KORBAN TEWAS akibat banjir bandang di Masamba, Kabupaten Luwu Utara di Provinsi Sulawesi Selatan meningkat menjadi 32 tewas pada Kamis, 16 orang masih hilang.
Juru Bicara Badan SAR Nasional [Basarnas] Yusuf Latif mengatakan hujan terus turun ketika ratusan penyelamat mencari penduduk desa yang masih hilang pada Kamis [16/7].
Banjir berawal Sabtu malam ketika hujan lebat menyebabkan tiga sungai meluap.
Keenam kecamatan yang terkena dampak banjir berada jauh dari ibukota provinsi, Makassar, dan para penyelamat terhambat oleh lumpur tebal yang menutupi jalan-jalan yang membuat kawasan terdampak bencana sulit dijangkau.
"Sulit untuk melewati daerah itu," kata Yusuf Latif.
"Kami juga mengalami kesulitan komunikasi," kata Latif.
Hujan deras kerap mengakibatkan banjir bandang dan tanah longsor di Indonesia, tempat jutaan orang tinggal di daerah pegunungan atau di dekat dataran banjir seperti dikutip Press Association yang dilansir MailOnline.
THE DEATH toll from flash floods in Indonesia’s South Sulawesi province rose to 32 on Thursday with 16 people still missing, officials said.
National Search and Rescue Agency spokesman Yusuf Latif said rain continued to fall as hundreds of rescuers searched on Thursday for the missing villagers.
The floods began on Saturday evening when heavy rains caused three rivers to overflow.
The six sub-districts affected by the floods are far from the provincial capital, Makassar, and rescuers were hampered by thick mud covering the roads that made the areas difficult to reach.
“It is difficult to pass through the areas,” Mr Latid said.
“We are also having communication difficulties,” Latid said.
Heavy rains cause frequent flash floods and landslides in Indonesia, where millions of people live in mountainous areas or near flood plains.
