Jakarta Flood - Feb 2007
On February 2007, Jakarta was hit with the worst flood ever. Three days of torrential rain has caused rivers to burst their banks, sending muddy water up to 3 meters deep into homes and shops. Hapless flood victims can be seen standing on their rooftops, waiting desperately to be rescued.
Amongst the thousands of flood victims, many of them live in slums with no basic amenities. They build their shacks along the riverbanks or in very crowded and impoverished areas. The flood swept away and destroyed their already minimal possessions. Some of them even lost their houses as the raging floodwaters swept them away.
The children and the elderly were the more vulnerable ones, as they are unable to fend for themselves. They were being rescued and placed in temporary shelters across Jakarta. Mosques and schools were used as temporary shelters during the flood. Water, medicine and food were scarce. Scores of children, mostly below five years old, succumbed to diarrhea, dehydration, fever and other flood-related illnesses.
When we heard news about the flood in Jakarta, Christine called Mr Benny from KDM to ask how we could help. Armed with donations from big-hearted sponsors in Singapore, we headed to Jakarta.
Happy Angels have been working very closely with friends in Jakarta for the past 2 years since it’s first out-reach project in Tengarang, Jakarta and subsequently with KDM in Cileungsi, Jakarta.
We worked with Mr Benny and identified one area, Pejompongan in Jakarta, which we were able to extend our help. These victims live near the railway tracks, with houses made of wooden planks and roofs made of zinc. We identified 50 families with a total of 200 flood victims consisting of adults, children and vulnerable infants.
Cash donations were used to buy essential items such as medicine, diapers, milk bottles, milk powder, fresh milk, exercise books, stationery sets, sarongs and oranges which were given to all families. A portion of the donated money was also allocated to buy school uniforms for the children. We also brought over clothing and clean towels for the victims.
Happy Angels would like to thank all volunteers and sponsors who have contributed selflessly to help these displaced families.
