FLOODING IN INDONESIAN CAPITAL

                FLOODING IN INDONESIAN CAPITAL

At least four people have been killed by heavy flooding in the Indonesian capital, Jakarta, say officials.

The flooding, caused by days of heavy rain, has blocked roads and forced businesses in the capital to close.

Areas including the central business district (CBD) were inundated and traffic was grid-locked as residents struggled to move around the city.Some 20,000 people have abandoned their homes,

The governor of Jakarta, Joko Widodo, has declared a state of emergency.

He also said he was committed to making a "breakthrough" in efforts to tackle the flooding.

The CBD normally escapes damage when Jakarta experiences its heavy seasonal rains, but on Thursday, many government offices and businesses were forced to close because staff could not get to work.

Local television pictures showed people wading through almost neck-high water in some parts of the city, while in others, the waters were up to 2m (6.5ft) deep.

"What we need most is life rafts and a big truck to help evacuate motorbike drivers whose engines malfunctioned because of the water," Sofia, a student, told BBC Indonesian.

Another Jakarta resident, Wildan, urged the government to do more to stop floods in future. "The dams are no longer sufficient to hold the water," he said.

Yayat Supriatna, an urban planning expert, told the BBC that Jakarta's drainage system "is still the same as it was in the Dutch colonial era" and should be rebuilt.

Mr Yudhoyono told reporters: "I have no problem with the palace being flooded. The most important thing is the people are protected."