As the rainy season approaches, the whole of Jakarta begins to be wary of floods. Still fresh in people’s memory about the floods that hit several areas of Jakarta at the beginning of the rainy season in 2020. At the time, Jakarta residents celebrated 2020 New Year's Eve with great fanfare. The pouring rains did not dampen the enthusiasm to celebrate the turn of the year. Everyone partied until the early morning. So it came as a surprise, as people woke up on the first day of the new year, the floods hit and damaged various public facilities, houses, and took dozens of lives.

Incidents like this certainly should not happen again. Therefore, the Jakarta Provincial Government has taken steps to mitigate flooding during the rainy season. One of the figures who played an important role in this effort was the sluice gate officer, especially the Manggarai Sluice Gate, which had been the center for distributing Jakarta's water discharge since the Dutch colonial period. These sluice gate officers are directly involved in preventing or minimizing flooding in the capital city.

Some time ago, the Jakarta Smart City team had the opportunity to interview Mr. Jamali, one of the capital's heroes who works as an operator of the Manggarai Water Gate. He shared about his daily life as well as the Manggarai Sluice officials’ efforts in minimizing flooding during the rainy season. Let's read the story.

Always Alert During Rainy Season

Mr. Jamali, or Jamal as his friends usually call him, has been working at the Manggarai Sluice Gate since 2016. Like other operators, his job is to regulate the floodgates and water discharge entering the Jakarta area. “I work 24 hours in shifts, starting at 7.30 a.m until the next day at the same time. Our duties are varied, ranging from monitoring, recording, and reporting the water discharge to the Water Resources Agency (DSDA), maintaining the sluice gate assets, to coordinating with officers from the Katulampa Dam, the Depok [Water Level] Monitoring Post and other related floodgates in Jakarta,” he explained.

Regarding the Manggarai Sluice Gate itself, this gate connects the West Flood Canal and the Ciliwung Lama Sluice Gate. There are also 5 floodgates at the Manggarai Sluice Gate. Currently, the five floodgates are open so that water can flow faster towards the sea, and any puddles could recede quickly and do not cause or at least, minimize flooding. Mr. Jamal added, “If our monitoring results state that the water level has reached alert level 3 or 2, usually there will be directions to increase the opening of the floodgates. Our monitoring results cover many things, from seawater, upstream water, to local rainwater.”

Even though his job is indirectly to help control water flow and flooding, Mr. Jamal admits that the responsibility he carries during the dry and the rainy season is not much different. “My job in the dry season and the rainy season is the same. During the dry season, other officers and I still have to monitor and report the water level, maintain the sluice assets, lubricate the chain, see the condition of the problematic sluice gate, and so on. We do all this so that when the rainy season comes, the floodgates can work optimally. Even in the rainy season, the tasks are the same, but we have to be more alert.” he said.

During the rainy season, the water discharge tends to increase. Manggarai Sluice Operators must report the water level every hour. If it is on alert level 3 or 2, the reporting is accelerated to once every 30 to 5 minutes. Not to mention, all operators must be very careful in reporting the water level figures. Because, the data will become a source of information for the community. Mr. Jamal stated that his responsibility in reporting the water level figures was accompanied by a sense of pleasure. "I am grateful to be able to help the community to inform the status of the water level at the Manggarai Sluice," said Mr. Jamal.

Work from The Heart, With Patience and High Responsibility

The Manggarai Sluice Gate has been built since 1922. This place stores a series of stories from various flood events in Jakarta. Likewise with Mr. Jamal. As an officer who spent six years of his life working at the Manggarai Water Gate, he experienced unforgettable events. One of them is when the flood in early 2020 reaches its peak. We as the people of Jakarta have probably witnessed for ourselves how the devastating flood swept the entire city. However, what about the situation at the Manggarai Sluice Gate at that time?

“At that time the water level had reached 1,965 cm, which means it was on alert level 1. It was raining continuously. The flow of water comes from upstream one after another. All officers gathered in the office, even us who were not on duty. We are on standby for days at the office, on standby, and continue to monitor the water level until everything returns to normal.” In fact, it turned out that several officers, including Mr. Jamal, had left their children, wife, and family in the house that was being hit by the flood. “Whatever conditions experienced, we as officers must continue to work because it is our obligation to maintain and regulate the flow of water, so that people can be calm, including families at home. Fortunately, after 3-4 days, the flood subsided,” he said with tears in his eyes remembering the incident.

Not only do they have to continue to monitor floods, Mr. Jamal and other operators have to serve complaints from the public. Many people contacted or even came directly to the Manggarai Sluice Gate in emotional states. “Why is the water high?”, “Why is my house flooding?”, these questions were asked to the Manggarai Sluice Gate operators. However, as public servants, they must still respond as best they can. “When people complain, that's where our abilities are tested. Usually if there are residents who come angry, I always try to calm them down. After the residents calmed down, I explained the actual conditions in the field. The key is to be patient and tell the truth well. After we explain the real condition to them, usually those people will understand."

Seeing the complexity of the tasks carried out by the Manggarai Sluice gate operators, one question arises, isn't Mr. Jamal tired of the work he is doing? With a smile on his lips he replied, “Being tired is normal, I experience it sometimes. Moreover, my house is also quite far. It took 1 hour by motorbike from my house to the office. However, I try to enjoy my work. If I'm tired, I’ll just look at my child's face. It feels like the tiredness has disappeared. After all, if we try to have fun and enjoy the work, everything will feel lighter.” Another reason Mr. Jamal is passionate about his work is because of the solidarity between operators and his superiors. He said that all the officers at the Manggarai Sluice are very united. "There are three people in each team. We are all like family. If one is having trouble, others will help. If one doesn't feel well, the other will back them up. Our boss also encouraged and reminded us to be careful while working. For example, when it rains heavily, we are reminded to wear safety kits, such as helmets and shoes, knowing the risks of working here, especially during the rainy season, are quite heavy,” he said.

For the current rainy season, Mr. Jamal said that the floodgates are being opened in anticipation when the rainfall reaches its peak. “We first empty the water and return the status to normal. So, if it rains heavily it reach alert level 3 or 2, we ready to accommodate the flow of water," explained Mr. Jamal. Meanwhile, other mitigation efforts such as monitoring, recording, and reporting on water discharge, maintaining sluice gate assets, coordinating with Regional Apparatus Organizations (OPD) will continue to be carried out during this rainy season, and so on.

As we know, mitigation from OPD such as Manggarai Water Gate officers alone is not enough to deal with potential flooding during the rainy season. Community participation is very much needed. Regarding this matter, Mr. Jamal also expressed his hope, “Hopefully residents will no longer litter and start to care more and protect the environment. Because when it floods, everyone will be affected.” He also expressed hope for Jakarta's flood mitigation, “With the dredging of reservoirs, the addition of heavy equipment, car pumps, and other facilities, hopefully Jakarta can be even better at dealing with floods.”

Mr. Jamal's hopes for Jakarta ended his interview with the Jakarta Smart City team that afternoon. His story gives us a view about how hard the efforts of the capital’s heroes are to anticipate flooding. Smartcitizens can also become heroes of the capital! You can do it by reporting problems that could trigger or exacerbate flooding in Jakarta through JAKI. In addition, you can also monitor the latest flood conditions through the JakPantau feature on JAKI and the Pantau Banjir website. The JAKI application can be downloaded from Google Play Storeor Apple App Store. Let’s use this opportunity to become your own version of a capital’s hero and protect Jakarta!