Recent heavy rain accompanied by strong winds has begun causing significant damage across the Jakarta area, including one fatality.
One of the more recent incidents occurred on Sunday, the 26th of October, when heavy rain and strong winds struck West Jakarta, causing the roof of a padel court in Taman Villa Meruya, Kembangan, to collapse. Based on on-site observations, part of the padel court’s roof—apparently made of lightweight steel and transparent material—appeared to have fallen onto the court.
Although the damage seemed quite severe, there were no reports of fatalities or injuries at the time of writing. The padel court management reportedly evacuated all sports equipment immediately and closed the area for safety reasons.
“Suddenly, the wind [became] really strong, like a whirlwind. Not long after, the roof of the [padel court] collapsed,” recalled Rudi, a resident who lives not far from the scene, as quoted in the press on Sunday.
Another local resident named Nando said that he was passing in front of the padel court when the incident occurred and saw the roof swaying at around 3 PM local time. As the roof was swaying, he heard a loud cracking sound, which eventually led to the roof collapsing. Furthermore, according to Nando, the padel court had only been open for about two months.
“I heard a crack, like a pipe breaking from above, really loud. It didn’t even take five minutes for [the roof] to fall,” recalled Nando.
Meanwhile, in South Jakarta, heavy rain also caused flooding in Pesanggrahan Village. The Jakarta Regional Disaster Management Agency (Badan Penanggulangan Bencana Daerah or BPBD Jakarta) recorded two neighbourhood units (Rukun Tetangga or RT) affected by flooding due to the downpour.
Also in South Jakarta, a tree fell and struck a Lexus car travelling through the Pondok Indah area on Sunday afternoon, killing the driver. According to Muhammad Yohan, Head of the Data and Information Centre at BPBD Jakarta, the incident occurred at 1.59 PM local time during heavy rain and strong winds in the area.
“High-intensity rain and strong winds caused a palm tree, of approximately 60 centimetres in diameter and 15 metres in height, to fall,” confirmed Yohan.
Additionally, the Head of the South Jakarta Fire and Rescue Service Sub-Department (Suku Dinas Penanggulangan Kebakaran dan Penyelamatan, or its abbreviation Sudin Gulkarmat), Syamsul Huda, revealed that the driver of the Lexus was already deceased when rescue personnel arrived.
“The victim was already deceased when he was evacuated. He was then taken to the hospital by ambulance,” said Huda.
Responding to the ongoing extreme weather, the Jakarta Provincial Government, through the City Parks and Forestry Agency, is urging the public to remain vigilant against the potential danger of falling trees, particularly in areas with many trees, greenbelts, and roadsides.
“Heavy rainfall accompanied by strong winds can increase the risk of falling trees,” said Fajar Sauri, Head of the Jakarta City Parks and Forestry Agency, in a statement on Monday (27th of October).