Situ Gintung, Disaster Management and Bureaucracy

Friday early morning (27 / 3), at around 3:00, they say, many people Cirendeu village, Tangerang, who heard the very loud roaring sound. Sound that comes from the embankment Situ Gintung. Artificial embankment in the Netherlands 1932-1933 is perforated 12 meters. Approximately 2.1 million cubic meters of water over any settlement that is located below the embankment. Flood hack Situ village Cirendeu, Ciputat, Tangerang. At 4:00, people began to flee. Water continues to escalate. At 5:00, many people began to ascend the roof to the house.


Area of ten hectares (ha) in Cirendeu destroyed by the flood due. Embankment collapse even more at around 13:00. Broken-down dam there was getting worse so the sink and wipe the houses and destroy the surrounding housing in the village and village Poncol Gintung. Floods are also the large Housing Estate Bukit Pratama Permai Cirendeu located on the edge Pesanggrahan Times.

Disaster Management

Buskin Situ Gintung not apart from lack of government attention in the management / governance of water management. Specifically, there are three negative attitudes and behavior of the related authorities in the management of the disaster on the tragedy Situ Gintung . First, the pattern of thought or attitude (mindset) and behavior that are less responsive to the development of symptoms natural. Second, the lack of management / maintenance of water resources infrastructure. Third, the low quality of decision making in the disaster prevention.

It seems that the relevant authorities long ignored the development of nature which have resulted in heavy burden Situ Gintung water as control. The occurrence of anomalies such as rainfall, so that the debit of water exceeds the capacity there.

With such natural conditions, the government should respond quickly to provide immediate reporting to the people or the people because there is water debit escalation of extremes. Speed associated with the reporting of early warning system (EWS) has been developed in Indonesia post-tsunami Aceh. As a local river (DAS) in the area of Jakarta, Bogor, Depok, Tangerang, Bekasi and Cianjur (Jabodetabekjur), the areas prone to flood disaster have been properly monitored by the government.

However, the increase could be the recording surface of the water in Situ Gintung periodically escape from the attention so that flood water had not notified to residents around the lake.

Can be, swamps (as the water park area) Situ Gintung allowed authorities to diuruk for the sake of economy. If you do not get permission, how to control matter? As a result, the swamps of the far reduced. In fact, the trees (as a water trap) ditebangi so the more the population dwindle.

Meanwhile, the increasing burden pendangkalan and there cause the water pressure is increasingly heavy. Thus, when hujannya high rainfall, water peluberan occur, even levee erosion.

Strength of the embankment should we see contextually. Gintung there are in the area of water governance Ciangke-DAS Pesanggrahan. Drastic changes of physical conditions and land use in watershed areas impacting on the embankment so that the power can not afford to keep the flow of river water Pesanggrahan.

Instead, forest area in the upstream region that functions as a water infiltration more be diminished building. As a result, the flow of water to Situ Gintung so quickly, and bring more land. Therefore, the process skin-deep going there because the more rapid sedimentation and solid.

Not a problem management / management there. Because the minimum-maintenance are not worn and dam-Situ Gintung no longer capable of holding water debit overload.

With age there 77 years old (built in the Netherlands in 1932), is far day the government tries to take the steps or actions antisipatif to reduce the burden Situ Gintung .

Two of the most basic action is the maintenance dredging to maintain the ideal depth and resilience of levee maintenance possible escalation of pressure because of heavy burden luberan water.

Around the area Situ Gintung no irregularities in land use. The function of agricultural land as infiltration / made into water catchment area settlements. Why in the upstream / downstream stand hundreds of homes in settlements? In fact, the position of dam lake is higher than the settlement area. Reading conditions such areas, large clear danger can threaten at any time.

Should be lamented the slowness of the response-related authorities when the report came about conditions there. Decision making can be in the form of a rapid response to symptoms or a sudden attitude to prevent the various threats that can come at any time. For example, prohibits the downstream area Situ Gintung made settlements.

Of course it is not an easy. For, the problems associated with psychosocial and culture. However, it should remain prohibited because an important part of management action to prevent the disaster.

Disaster Bureaucracy

The task of the bureaucracy that is authorized to monitor and treat Situ Gintung are: first, identify the impact on the environment around there, because the area is already developed into tourist areas. Second, to predict the impact that could arise and strength / endurance embankment. Third, to evaluate sedimentation rate, age-related danger there, and the implications for the housing / construction in the surrounding areas and how much mitigation efforts have been made.

Mitigation is needed to minimize negative impact, improve, and enlarge the positive impact, both technical and non-(nonstruktural). In order to mitigate, sophisticated equipment is available. For example, tools for mapping (including shooting the air) and the laboratory to check the level of sedimentation. Of the officer also has a sophisticated computer to store, process, and a display-data.

Situ Gintung tragedy shows, related authorities during this very minimal mitigation tasks. Function over land is often associated with cases of bribe / corruption. Hence, the broken-down embankment Situ Gintung is a bureaucratic disaster. Thus, it should be a very expensive lesson that similar cases do not occur in the future. Properly, we can not only build a vibrant without the added maintenance professionally.

* Suparmono, construction management of water resources, irrigation former Director General of the Department of Public Works.