The first rains of the wet season are usually dramatic, and this year was no exception. For sixteen hours torrential rain pounded eastern Flores, turning Maumere into New Orleans. No one went out, and no one went to work. The first rains are a time to just sit out on the front step and gaze in wonder as nine months of accumulated dust and dirt is washed away. I went into town on the bike, with floodwater hissing on the exhaust pipe, and it was like Christmas day in the UK, with barely anyone out and about. Even in full wet weather gear I was soaked to the skin in seconds, and I returned home with a very clean bike, but with no brakes as they has become waterlogged.
While all this excitement was unfolding in Maumere, Beth was in a workshop at the Sea World club, some 8 km east of here. She phoned me to say that she was standing on one side of the Geliting bridge, hoping to meet her colleague from the hospital who was due to arrive and give a speech at the workshop. He was never to make it to the workshop because the bridge had just been swept away be a flash flood cascading down from the hills, stranding him on the Maumere side.
When the rain had died down a bit, I ventured to the bridge to see if I could make it across and meet Beth for dinner. As you can see from the picture, it was clear that I was not going to get across the main breach, but with help from some enterprising kids (who charged me Rp 1,000 - about 5p - for the privilege) I managed to find a causeway that went through some flooded fields, over the river and eventually through a coconut plantation leading to Sea World. Beth and her colleagues were very impressed to see me, dripping wet and covered in mud, as I disturbed their seminar.
The bridge will not be repaired for many months, but as a temporary measure both sides have been bulldozed away, so now there is a causeway through the river. If we have more heavy rain then this too will be swept away, and most of the road with it. As this is the main east-west highway through Flores, and is the only way to get from here to Larantuka, such an event will cause some disruption.
One of the interesting things about these kinds of minor disasters is the way the locals take it all in their stride. Hundreds of houses were flooded, and some crops ruined by the flood, yet everyone saw this is God's will and thus there was no sense in grumbling about it. I saw one man sitting on his terrace, outside a house surrounded by water, with all his furniture and possessions piled up next to him to dry out, and yet he was peacefully watching the world go by, smoking his kretek cigarette. He gave me a cheery wave as I waded past.
Such events are not a cause of panic and looting (anyway, what would you steal?), but instead are a time for ingenuity and enterprise. It is amazing how hundreds of Flores menfolk, when motivated, are able to find a way to get minibuses and motorcycles over terrain that is seemingly impassable. When I pointed this out to my chum Pak Sirilus, he explained that this was the only way things could be, as the road is an essential artery of trade, and so everything must be brought to bear to keep it clear. He said this as if frenetic activity and ruthless attention to task was a default characteristic of the average Flores Male. In my experience I think it may be that disasters somehow bring out the best of us, but clearly a community that is acquainted with mutual co-operation and support will tend to be well disposed to getting stuck in to the task in hand with their fellow man. A society atomised by individualism and materialism, on the other hand, lacking such networks of trust, may descend into chaos and every man for himself. Just a thought.
Hi! Just wanted to let you know that your blog has been a big help to me. I am doing a topic at school called "Am I lucky?" which compares Australian lifestyle with a town in Indonesia. We chose Maumere because our teacher spent two years there. My assigmnent consists of me reasearching the religion, culture, lifestyles, weather etc of Maumere and comparing it to Australian lifestyle. Just letting you know that your blog was great - especially "Deluge". Sounds like you are haveing a great time. Also, do you have any sites or information you could give me that may be of help to my investigations. Thanks for your time,
Laura Hartnell
Year 9 Student
Trafalgar High School
Victoria, Australia
email: laura.h@hotmail.com
Posted by: Laura | March 27, 2006 at 10:28
Hi. Me very much to like here. I shall advise this site to the friends.
I am sorry for my English. I only learn this language.
Posted by: Antique | July 13, 2007 at 06:44