VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

A flash flood submerged hundreds of homes in Sempol Village, Ijen Sub-district, Bondowoso District, East Java Province, on Wednesday.

Muddy floodwaters inundated Sempol after unremitting torrential rains in the Mount Suket area in Jampit, Kukuh Triyatmoko, head of the Bondowoso disaster mitigation office, stated.

Floodwaters and mud, reaching a height of nearly 30 centimeters, submerged some 200 homes in Sempol, he noted.

"Some 200 homes are estimated to have been affected by the flooding, but we are yet collecting precise data. No reports of casualties have, so far, been received," he remarked.

The flooding was triggered by downpour lashing over two hours in the upstream Mount Suket area, near a coffee plantation.

Indonesia is currently experiencing wet rainy season after being hit by prolonged drought that has resulted in a water crisis in several provinces.

In Central Tapanuli, North Sumatra, six people lost their lives, while three went missing in flash floods, according to the Central Tapanuli Disaster Mitigation Office (BPBD). Flooding due to torrential rain submerged seven villages in Barus Sub-district, Central Tapanuli District, North Sumatra, on early Wednesday morning.

The flooding also caused injuries to 22 people and inundated some 700 homes, Agus Haryanto, Secretary of the Central Tapanuli BPBD, confirmed on Wednesday.

"The latest data indicated that six people died, while three were declared missing. The dead victims are yet being identified," he noted.

The flood-affected villages were Kampung Mudik, Pasar Terandam, Bungo Tanjung, Kinali, Ujung Batu, Batu Gerigis, and Padang Masiang.

Evacuation posts and health posts have been established in the district to handle residents affected by the natural disaster.

Meanwhile, in Batanghari District, Jambi Province, at least 16 villages were inundated, as the Batanghari River overflowed its bank since the past one week.

"Some 16 villages in six sub-districts are affected by the flooding," Samral, secretary of the Batanghari Disaster Mitigation Office (BPBD), stated on Wednesday. (ANTARA)

The Hasan Sadikin Hospital (RSHS) in Bandung, West Java, confirmed that the two patients undergoing treatment in its isolation rooms had not contracted the Wuhan coronavirus.

President Director of RSHS Nina Susana Dewi stated here on Thursday that the hospital had received the result of the laboratory check on samples of the two patients conducted by the Research and Development Agency of the Health Ministry.

"Officially, the RSHS has received the result of the checkup conducted on HG (a Chinese national) and HA (a resident of Bandung) that showed they tested negative for the disease," she revealed.

HG has already receive hospital discharge, as his condition improved. HG was suffering from acute upper respiratory tract infection.

"We have to be prudent to announce the result of the test. Mr HG has been discharged from the hospital after his condition improved," Dewi stated.

Meanwhile, Yovita Hartantri, head of the hospital's special infection team, noted that another patient HA had yet to be released from the hospital and is under medical observation, although he had not contracted coronavirus.

"He is in stable condition, with no fever, and there is noticeable improvement in the thorax x-ray. However, he still requires to undergo medical treatment in the isolation room," Hartantri stated.

A Chinese national, identified by his initials as HG, 35, had exhibited symptoms of influenza and acute upper respiratory tract infection. The patient was referred from the Cahya Kawaluyaan Hospital in Padalarang District, West Java.

HG was placed in an isolated room, as he had earlier paid a visit to China. The city in China that he had visited is some 1,300 kilometers away from Wuhan, the ground zero of the outbreak.

Another patient HA, 24, is a Bandung resident symptomatic with acute lower respiratory tract infection. HA had visited Singapore recently.

As of Thursday, coronavirus had claimed the lives of 170 people in China. At least 18 countries that reported the case comprise Malaysia, Japan, South Korea, Thailand, Singapore, Australia, the United States, Cambodia, Nepal, Canada, Sri Lanka, France, Vietnam, Germany, the United Arab Emirates, and Finland. (ANTARA)

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The Indonesian Air Force has readied three aircraft for the evacuation of Indonesians from Wuhan, China, the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak.

"We have readied two Boeing 737 and a C130 Hercules. The move is based on the result of our meeting two days ago with the Coordinating Ministry for Political, Legal, and Security Affairs; Health Ministry; and Foreign Affairs Ministry," a spokesman of the Indonesian Air Force Air Commodore Fajar Adriyanto stated here on Wednesday.

The Air Force has also readied personnel from its health battalion, equipped with necessary medical equipment, he noted.

However, the Air Force awaits further instruction from the Foreign Affairs Ministry over the permit from the Government of China, as Wuhan has been on lockdown since January 23 to prevent further spread of the coronavirus.

"We are still waiting for the Foreign Affairs Ministry on whether they can obtain the permit from China. The Air Force is ready," Adriyanto stated.

He could not as yet confirm the number of Indonesians to be evacuated from ground zero of the outbreak, though stating that each aircraft can take 100 to 200 Indonesians.

"We have also prepared equipment for the crews to prevent transmission of the virus. Their food must be monitored and would be under quarantine upon their arrival," he stated.

The Foreign Affairs Ministry has recorded 243 Indonesians in China’s Hubei Province, of which 100 are in Wuhan City.

As of Wednesday morning, the death toll in the coronavirus outbreak has reached 132 in China, while 103 patients received hospital discharge.

According to the local authority, 5,997 people in China had contracted the 2019-nCov, including eight in Hong Kong, seven in Macau, and eight in Taiwan.

Some 9,239 other people were suspected of having been infected by the virus, and one new case was found in the Autonomous Region of Tibet in the southwest of China.

On Wednesday, hundreds of Japanese and Americans were airlifted out of Wuhan, with Australia to follow suit. (ANTARA)

A recent outbreak of coronavirus which began in China’s Wuhan City, Hubei Province, in December last year, has spread to 14 countries. Coronavirus was first identified in the 1960’s, but the new strain, known as the novel coronavirus, only appeared in humans last year when people in Wuhan started suffering respiratory infections.

Dr. Erlina Burhan, a pulmonologist of Persahabatan Hospital and Chairperson of Indonesian Pulmonologist Association of the Jakarta branch, in a special interview at Voice of Indonesia’s studio, Tuesday, said although it has already caused more than 100 deaths, the new strain of Coronavirus is not necessarily more deadly than other strains. She said compared to the fatality rate of SARS and of MERS-CoV (Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus), the new strain of Coronavirus is currently less deadly.

“Data showed that the fatality rate of SARS is more than 10%. And also, the fatality rate of MERS-CoV (Middle East Syndrome Syndrome Coronavirus) is even higher, more than 30%. And if we look at this current data showed there are more than 4000 affected people but those who eventually died was around 100 something, which is, if we count the rate is no more than 5%, so the fatality rate is lower.”

Dr. Erlina Burhan, who is also a lecturer at the Faculty of Medicine, University of Indonesia, added the new type of coronavirus has a different DNA structure, but the symptoms are the same.

“The new type obviously is having the different structure of DNA, but the symptoms that are caused by the same family, it’s just the same. It affected upper and lower respiratory tract with the same symptoms, such as fever, headache, not feeling well, and if the virus already affects the lungs then you start to have coughing and also leads to difficulty in breathing.”

Dr. Erlina Burhan advised there is a lot to learn about the new strain. She further said that the symptoms of the new strain of Coronavirus take the form of upper respiratory tract infection, including sneezing, sore throat, coughing and shortness of breath. She recommended people maintain a fair distance from anyone showing such symptoms. She also said the immune system plays a key role in fighting this virus. She asked people to be aware, keep healthy and eat nutritious food to support the immune system.  (VOI/LAURA GREEN/SAYEE SHREE L.R/AHM)