Heavy rains trigger flash floods in Indonesia

Jakarta, Feb 29 (IANS) Flash floods triggered by heavy rainfall in Indonesia's capital Jakarta on Thursday inundated 34 roads, causing traffic disruptions and evacuation of residents in some areas of the city, according to authorities.

The floodwater depths ranged from 15 centimeters to over 50 centimeters, according to the Jakarta Disaster Mitigation Agency.

Indonesia's weather agency on Thursday issued a warning for potential heavy rains across the capital of Jakarta and its satellite cities for the next eight days.

Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) meteorology deputy head Guswanto said in a statement that heavy rains and strong winds could hit Jakarta and its satellites, including Bogor, Depok and Bekasi, between March 1 and March 8, Xinhua news agency reported.

He said an increase in rainfall in Jakarta, home to around 10 million inhabitants, has been observed since Tuesday with rainfall with extreme intensity happening in the northern areas of the city, such as Kelapa Gading and Tanjung Priok.

"BMKG will continue to monitor weather conditions and changes based on the latest data," Guswanto said, calling on the public to remain alert.