Riri Rahayu, Jakarta – Floods have inundated at least 80 houses in Sepaku Village, Sepaku District, North Penajam Paser since late Sunday, June 23, around 23:00 local time, according to resident Arman Jais. The flooding in the new capital of Nusantara or IKN area worsened following heavy rains in the upstream area of the Sepaku River on Monday morning.

Arman claimed that normally, the water does not suddenly submerge the residents' settlements despite heavy precipitation in the upstream area, suspecting that the flooding was attributable to the construction of the Sepaku Intake project next to the residential area, which now blocks the Sepaku River. Not to mention that the dam wall was built beyond the height level of the village's main road.

"The river is blocked, so the water is rising, [submerging residents' houses]," Arman told Tempo on Monday.

The flooding, reaching up to two meters, has also affected rice fields and the main roads around the new capital of Nusantara or IKN, prompting some residents to evacuate to their relatives' homes. The Regional Disaster Mitigation Agency (BPBD) and the local police are still monitoring the situation.

Arman recalled that residents had warned of possible flooding as a result of the intake construction. "But they denied it, claiming that it (the project) had been studied that flooding would not occur in the next 35 years," he said.

Citing from the Ministry of Public Works and Housing (PUPR), the Sepaku River Intake with a capacity of 3,000 liters per second, a 117.2-meter width, and a 2.3-meter height is designed to meet the raw water needs of the new capital city.

Tempo has reached out to the head of the IKN Infrastructure Development Task Force, Danis Sumadilaga, to comment on the flooding in the Sepaku area, but has not yet received a response.

Source: https://en.tempo.co/read/1883485/floods-hit-east-kalimantans-sepaku-nusantara-are