News — 18 January, 2013

OpenStreetMap Usage in Jakarta Flood Response

Days of rain in Jakarta and surrounding areas have caused massive flooding in the region. Today (Friday) the flooding has eased somewhat but thousands of people remain displaced and 11 people have died. A state of emergency has been called until January 27th for Indonesia's capital city.

Situation

Days of rain in Jakarta and surrounding areas have caused massive flooding in the region. Today (Friday) the flooding has eased somewhat but thousands of people remain displaced and 11 people have died. A state of emergency has been called until January 27th for Indonesia's capital city.

For the majority of this emergency the HOT team has actually been in Kupang in West Timor giving a workshop. Yesterday we headed back to our homes in Jakarta and saw firsthand some of the impact of the flooding.

Picture from Harry, Dewi, Katrina and Kate's Trip Home from the Jakarta Airport Yesterday

OpenStreetMap Use

OpenStreetMap has played a role in the dissemination of information from the Jakarta disaster management agency (BPBD DKI Jakarta). OpenStreetMap has been used as base data for mapping and marking neighborhood boundaries. These map products have been released by BPBD DKI Jakarta and shared through social networks and online newspapers in the area. This has been through the joint work of the BPBD DKI Jakarta, Indonesia's disaster management agency (BNPB) and the Australia-Indonesia Facility for Disaster Reduction (AIFDR).

Much of the base data collected in OpenStreetMap was created as part of a series of events in March 2012 to collect preparedness information in case of just such flooding events. During that time urban village heads (lurah) were brought together to help map neighborhood boundaries and critical infrastructure in Jakarta. 

Friday's flood map from BPBD DKI Jakarta

Looking Forward

Currently there is not a need for the International HOT and OpenStreetMap community to respond. Teams from the University of Indonesia and the Australia-Indonesia Facility for Disaster Risk Reduction are providing technical support as needed and can call on the local HOT team when necessary. After the situation has eased we will look into ways the data could be more effectively used and if there is other preparedness efforts that could take place.