Jakarta declares emergency as water levels rise
Five dead and thousands evacuated amid capital's worst flooding in five years
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An Indonesian man stands next to Indonesian and German national flags at the flood-inundated business district of Jakarta on Jan 17, 2013. Floods which have made more than 19,000 people homeless and killed three brought parts of the Indonesian capital to a standstill on Jan 17, with even the president forced to roll up his trousers. -- PHOTO: AFP
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A woman stands in her food stall in the flooded business area in Jakarta on Jan 17, 2013. Heavy monsoonal rains triggered severe flooding in large swathes of the Indonesian capital Jakarta on Thursday, with many government offices and businesses forced to closed because staff could not get to work. Weather officials warned the rains could get worse over the next few days and media reports said that thousands of people in Jakarta and its satellite cities had been forced to leave their homes because of the torrential downpours this week. -- PHOTO:REUTERS
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People sit inside a Starbucks cafe as floods hit the business district in Jakarta on Jan 17, 2013. Heavy monsoon rains triggered severe flooding in large swathes of the Indonesian capital Jakarta on Thursday, with many government offices and businesses forced to closed because staff could not get to work. Weather officials warned the rains could get worse over the next few days and media reports said that thousands of people in Jakarta and its satellite cities had been forced to leave their homes because of the torrential downpours this week. -- PHOTO:REUTERS
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A man uses his handphone near the Bundaran Hotel Indonesia roundabout during a flooding in Jakarta on Jan 17, 2013. Heavy monsoon rains triggered severe flooding in large swathes of the Indonesian capital Jakarta on Thursday, with many government offices and businesses forced to closed because staff could not get to work. Weather officials warned the rains could get worse over the next few days and media reports said that thousands of people in Jakarta and its satellite cities had been forced to leave their homes because of the torrential downpours this week. -- PHOTO:REUTERS
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Indonesian workers sit on a truck as they are evacuated from their offices to higher grounds at the business district in Jakarta on Jan 17, 2013. Heavy monsoon rains triggered severe flooding in large swathes of the Indonesian capital Jakarta on Thursday, with many government offices and businesses forced to closed because staff could not get to work. Weather officials warned the rains could get worse over the next few days and media reports said that thousands of people in Jakarta and its satellite cities had been forced to leave their homes because of the torrential downpours this week. -- PHOTO:REUTERS
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Indonesian pedestrians wade through a flooded main street in Jakarta on Jan 17, 2013. Floods which have made more than 19,000 people homeless and killed three brought parts of the Indonesian capital to a standstill on Jan 17, with even the president forced to roll up his trousers. -- PHOTO: AFP
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People wade through a flooded street in Jakarta, Indonesia on Friday, Jan 18, 2013. Indonesia's army deployed rubber boats in the capital's business district on Thursday to rescue people trapped in floods that inundated much of the city of 14 million people. -- PHOTO:AP
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A taxi wades through a flooded street in Jakarta, Indonesia on Friday, Jan 18, 2013. Indonesia's army deployed rubber boats in the capital's business district on Thursday to rescue people trapped in floods that inundated much of the city of 14 million people. -- PHOTO: AP
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A van goes through a flooded street in Jakarta, Indonesia on Friday, Jan 18, 2013. Indonesia's army deployed rubber boats in the capital's business district on Thursday to rescue people trapped in floods that inundated much of the city of 14 million people. -- PHOTO: AP
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People cross a flooded street while holding a cord for safety in Jakarta, Indonesia on Friday, Jan. 18, 2013. Indonesia's army deployed rubber boats in the capital's business district on Thursday to rescue people trapped in floods that inundated much of the city of 14 million people. -- PHOTO:AP
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Vehicles and pedestrians moving through muddy brown floodwaters in the capital yesterday. -- PHOTOS: AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, ASSOCIATED PRESS
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President Yudhoyono (in blue) and Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa examining the flooded interior of the presidential palace yesterday. -- PHOTOS: AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, ASSOCIATED PRESS
An Indonesian man stands next to Indonesian and German national flags at the flood-inundated business district of Jakarta on Jan 17, 2013. Floods which have made more than 19,000 people homeless and killed three brought parts of the Indonesian capital to a standstill on Jan 17, with even the president forced to roll up his trousers. -- PHOTO: AFP
A woman stands in her food stall in the flooded business area in Jakarta on Jan 17, 2013. Heavy monsoonal rains triggered severe flooding in large swathes of the Indonesian capital Jakarta on Thursday, with many government offices and businesses forced to closed because staff could not get to work. Weather officials warned the rains could get worse over the next few days and media reports said that thousands of people in Jakarta and its satellite cities had been forced to leave their homes because of the torrential downpours this week. -- PHOTO:REUTERS
People sit inside a Starbucks cafe as floods hit the business district in Jakarta on Jan 17, 2013. Heavy monsoon rains triggered severe flooding in large swathes of the Indonesian capital Jakarta on Thursday, with many government offices and businesses forced to closed because staff could not get to work. Weather officials warned the rains could get worse over the next few days and media reports said that thousands of people in Jakarta and its satellite cities had been forced to leave their homes because of the torrential downpours this week. -- PHOTO:REUTERS
A man uses his handphone near the Bundaran Hotel Indonesia roundabout during a flooding in Jakarta on Jan 17, 2013. Heavy monsoon rains triggered severe flooding in large swathes of the Indonesian capital Jakarta on Thursday, with many government offices and businesses forced to closed because staff could not get to work. Weather officials warned the rains could get worse over the next few days and media reports said that thousands of people in Jakarta and its satellite cities had been forced to leave their homes because of the torrential downpours this week. -- PHOTO:REUTERS
Indonesian workers sit on a truck as they are evacuated from their offices to higher grounds at the business district in Jakarta on Jan 17, 2013. Heavy monsoon rains triggered severe flooding in large swathes of the Indonesian capital Jakarta on Thursday, with many government offices and businesses forced to closed because staff could not get to work. Weather officials warned the rains could get worse over the next few days and media reports said that thousands of people in Jakarta and its satellite cities had been forced to leave their homes because of the torrential downpours this week. -- PHOTO:REUTERS
Indonesian pedestrians wade through a flooded main street in Jakarta on Jan 17, 2013. Floods which have made more than 19,000 people homeless and killed three brought parts of the Indonesian capital to a standstill on Jan 17, with even the president forced to roll up his trousers. -- PHOTO: AFP
People wade through a flooded street in Jakarta, Indonesia on Friday, Jan 18, 2013. Indonesia's army deployed rubber boats in the capital's business district on Thursday to rescue people trapped in floods that inundated much of the city of 14 million people. -- PHOTO:AP
A taxi wades through a flooded street in Jakarta, Indonesia on Friday, Jan 18, 2013. Indonesia's army deployed rubber boats in the capital's business district on Thursday to rescue people trapped in floods that inundated much of the city of 14 million people. -- PHOTO: AP
A van goes through a flooded street in Jakarta, Indonesia on Friday, Jan 18, 2013. Indonesia's army deployed rubber boats in the capital's business district on Thursday to rescue people trapped in floods that inundated much of the city of 14 million people. -- PHOTO: AP
People cross a flooded street while holding a cord for safety in Jakarta, Indonesia on Friday, Jan. 18, 2013. Indonesia's army deployed rubber boats in the capital's business district on Thursday to rescue people trapped in floods that inundated much of the city of 14 million people. -- PHOTO:AP
Vehicles and pedestrians moving through muddy brown floodwaters in the capital yesterday. -- PHOTOS: AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, ASSOCIATED PRESS
President Yudhoyono (in blue) and Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa examining the flooded interior of the presidential palace yesterday. -- PHOTOS: AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, ASSOCIATED PRESS
JAKARTA - Indonesia has declared a state of emergency in waterlogged Jakarta after days of rain forced thousands to be evacuated, left five dead and affected nearly 100,000 others in the capital city's worst flooding since 2007.
Weather officials yesterday warned that the worst was not over, with more heavy rain expected in the next few days. Army special forces and firemen have been deployed to rescue the stranded.
Overnight torrential rains caused flash floods yesterday, forcing many people to abandon their homes and rescuers in lorries or dinghies to go to the aid of people stranded in offices or by the road.
Jakarta's busy city centre was not spared. Aerial footage showed the iconic fountain at the Hotel Kempinski traffic circle in the heart of the city surrounded by a sea of muddy brown water.
Background story
More than 100mm of rain that fell overnight nearly paralysed the capital as the city's poor drainage system could not cope with the deluge.
Early morning traffic was brought to a standstill, preventing thousands of people from getting to work. By late morning, even train and bus services were halted.
