January 26, 2012
JAKARTA (AFP) - At least three people were killed and 35 injured as heavy rains lashed Indonesia, bringing down trees and powerlines and damaging hundreds of homes, an official said Thursday.
"Storms on Wednesday killed three people -- one person in Jakarta and one each in Malang and Blitar districts in East Java," National Disaster Management Agency spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho told AFP.
"A motor rickshaw driver in Jakarta was killed after being crushed by a falling tree. The storms also killed two other people, but we are investigating the circumstances," he added.
The agency said storms hit eight districts on Java island, including in Jakarta, injuring 35 people.
According to the latest assessment more than 450 houses and four schools were damaged, it added.
The Jakarta Globe newspaper said that bad weather also hit the resort island of Bali, killing one person and injuring six others, but Nugroho could not confirm the report.
A ferry carrying more than 200 people, including five Australians, heading to the Gili islands off Bali nearly capsized after being caught in waves up to three metres (10 feet) high, but there were no casualties, it reported.
Storms, landslides and floods are common in Indonesia during the annual rainy season, which peaks between December and February.
