Hours of heavy rain in northern part of Sulawesi island on Thursday have led to flooding in parts of Manado, Gorontalo, Bitung and other nearby areas. In some areas, the flood was also accompanied by landslide.
In the city of Manado, flood has drowned 20 villages in Bunaken Darat, Tumimping, Singkil, Paldua, Tikala, Paal Dua, and Wenang subdistricts sinceThursday morning.
The cause of flood is the overflowing water in Tondano river that could not be contained by the cities' urban drainage.
More than 1,000 houses areinundatedto a height of 1-2 meters. Around 5,000 people have beenevacuated to safer places.
Regional Disaster MitigationAgency (BPBD) has started working togetherwith local military, police and volunteersto provide emergency response.
Flood is a frequent issue for Manado and itssurrounding areas, especially during torrential rainy season.
In North Gorontalo, North Sulawesi, around eleven villages in Tolinggula, Sumalata and Biau subdistricts are affected. Hundreds of houses, hectares of rice fields, schools and other buildings areinundated, displacing more than 100 people.
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Meanwhile, in Bitung, North Sulawesi, the flood drove hundreds of people out of the city while BPBD tries to help the remaining residents.