Floods inundate thousands of homes in Indonesian capital

JAKARTA, Indonesia — Torrential rains in the Indonesian capital have overwhelmed drains and flooded roads and thousands of homes.

The disaster mitigation agency said Tuesday that more than 50 areas are flooded in Jakarta, with waters up to 1.5 metres (5 feet) high in East Jakarta.

It said the city’s drains couldn’t accommodate the runoff and rivers also overflowed. Local media reported that a worker for the city government died and one person drowned in Bekasi, a Jakarta satellite city.

Floods in 2013 killed more than two dozen people in Jakarta and forced tens of thousands to flee their homes.

The city, which has about 30 million people in its greater metropolitan area, says it has reduced the number of flood-prone areas since then by dredging rubbish-filled rivers and other measures.

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Floods and deadly landslides are a fact of life for Indonesians during the wet season, with other major cities suffering repeated flooding.

Earlier this month, up to 40,000 people were caught in severe flooding following days of torrential rain in central Indonesia and 13 people were killed in landslides on the resort island of Bali.

The Associated Press