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Indonesia floods kill five people and leave thousands homeless

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Five people have died and thousands were forced from their homes after severe floods in Indonesia while an earthquake also rattled the country today. 

The muddy deluge inundated the presidential palace, a major hospital and entire neighbourhoods across Jakarta yesterday. 

The heavy rains came only weeks after 70 residents of the low-lying megacity died in some of Indonesia’s worst flooding in recent memory. 

Separately, a 5.9-magnitude tremor shook the east of the country today and was felt as far away as the north of Australia. 

A young boy holds his belongings above the water as he wades chest-deep through a flooded street in Jakarta yesterday, where severe flooding killed five people

A young boy holds his belongings above the water as he wades chest-deep through a flooded street in Jakarta yesterday, where severe flooding killed five people 

Residents clean up flood damage by the side of a polluted river in Jakarta today, a day after 3ft floods in Indonesia's capital

Residents clean up flood damage by the side of a polluted river in Jakarta today, a day after 3ft floods in Indonesia’s capital 

Cars and motorcycles are hindered by the high waters yesterday in the Puri Indah neighbourhood of Jakarta

Cars and motorcycles are hindered by the high waters yesterday in the Puri Indah neighbourhood of Jakarta 

Two teenagers were among the five people drowned or electrocuted in hard-hit parts of the city, Indonesia’s national disaster agency said.   

‘The joint rescue team is still searching’ for three other possible victims, agency spokesman Agus Wibowo said. 

Nearly 20,000 people were staying in emergency shelters, he added.  

Floodwaters reached more three feet in some parts of the capital, with rescuers searching drenched districts in pontoon boats to locate vulnerable residents. 

Parts of the city had ground to a halt as thousands of buildings were swamped, sparking power outages and disrupting commuter trains.

Jakarta, a sprawling city beleaguered by massive traffic jams and poor infrastructure, is prone to flooding during the annual wet season.

Indonesian president Joko Widodo last year unveiled plans to relocate the capital to an as yet unbuilt city on Borneo island.

Indonesia’s weather agency linked the rains to tropical cyclones, but the agency head also said such extreme weather events were happening with greater intensity and more frequently.

Jakarta residents ferry their children through the high waters after heavy rains triggered widespread flooding and a deluge of up to three feet

Jakarta residents ferry their children through the high waters after heavy rains triggered widespread flooding and a deluge of up to three feet 

Floodwaters were receding today but roads such as this one were muddy after the high waters on Tuesday

Floodwaters were receding today but roads such as this one were muddy after the high waters on Tuesday 

A map from the U.S. Geological Survey showing the location of the 5.9-magnitude earthquake in Indonesia today. It was felt as far away as Australia

A map from the U.S. Geological Survey showing the location of the 5.9-magnitude earthquake in Indonesia today. It was felt as far away as Australia 

Jakarta governor Anies Baswedan said more than 200 neighbourhoods had been hit.

‘We are concentrating on mitigation. We have prepared all resources to be deployed,’ he told reporters.  

Nana Setiawan, a 50-year old resident of East Jakarta, said his house has been hit by floods four times this year.

‘I moved here three years ago, and as far as I know, normally the floods will only happen once a year or even once in five years,’ he said. 

‘But this year it’s already been four times and today is the worst.’ 

The floodwaters were receding today. 

Today’s earthquake was separate but caused a 5.9-magnitude tremor in eastern Indonesia, although there was no tsunami warning.  

The undersea quake struck at a depth of 38 miles, about 170 kilometres southwest of the city of Tual in the archipelago’s Maluku province.   

Witnesses told monitoring service EMSC that they had seen doors and fish tanks shaking as far away as the Northern Territory of Australia.  

In 2018, a 7.5-magnitude quake and a subsequent tsunami in Palu on Sulawesi island left more than 4,300 people dead or missing. 

High waters in Jakarta yesterday where nearly 20,000 people were staying in emergency shelters in the latest disaster to hit the country

High waters in Jakarta yesterday where nearly 20,000 people were staying in emergency shelters in the latest disaster to hit the country 

A resident fills up a bucket with polluted water in Jakarta today, a day after the deadly floods

A resident fills up a bucket with polluted water in Jakarta today, a day after the deadly floods 

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