Jakarta – The Ministry of Public Works (PU) is accelerating the emergency handling of flood-affected infrastructure in Central Tapanuli Regency and Sibolga City, North Sumatra Province. This treatment includes restoring access to clean water, normalizing rivers and repairing roads and bridges. “The conditions occurring in North Sumatra require a quick and measured response. The Ministry of Public Works ensures that all resources, including heavy equipment, technical personnel and basic infrastructure support, are mobilized to restore infrastructure function, open road access, and to meet the community’s clean water needs. Citizen safety is the main priority,” Minister of Public Works, Dody Hanggodo, said on Thursday (11252/11252). Emergency treatment is carried out simultaneously to ensure that recovery can take place quickly, especially in areas experiencing the most severe damage. Scroll TO CONTINUE CONTENT During the inspection of the Aek Doras Stream, Sibolga City, with Commission V DPR RI, on Wednesday (10/12/2025), the Director General of Water Resources, Dwi Purwantoro, revealed that heavy sedimentation has significantly reduced the depth of the river, causing overflow to residential areas. River normalization is a priority step. “The depth of the river, which used to be about 2 meters, is now only 0.5 meters due to sedimentation. Therefore, we do normalization so that when it rains heavily, the flow does not overflow,” said Dwi Purwantoro. Emergency response was carried out on 2 rivers in Sibolga City and 6 rivers in Central Tapanuli Regency. “We will add tools and human resources to speed up the work, especially considering the weather conditions we still have to be careful about,” added Dwi. The Ministry of Public Works (PU) is accelerating the emergency handling of flood-affected infrastructure in Central Tapanuli Regency and Sibolga City, North Sumatra Province. (Doc. Ministry of Public Works) Director General of Highways Roy Rizali Anwar said the same. He said most of the landslides and damage to national roads had been dealt with. “Out of a total of 171 landslide points, 27 broken road points and 38 partially collapsed road points, currently 163 landslide points have been dealt with, 10 broken road points, 18 partially collapsed road points and 28 receding flood points,” explains Roy. The Ministry of Public Works is also preparing a number of acceleration options, including detours, emergency supplies, as well as the installation of bailey bridges at heavily damaged points. This effort aims to maintain community mobility and logistical distribution continues, even if field conditions remain challenging. Meanwhile, in the residential sector, the Director General of Human Settlements, Dewi Chomistriana, ensures that basic services for affected residents continue to be strengthened. “The Ministry of Public Works installed 13 public fire hydrants, provided 3 water tankers and operated a temporary IPA with a capacity of 0.8 liters per second,” explains Dewi. In addition, the Ministry of Public Works distributed PAC and chlorine to ensure water quality and began identifying damage to intake, transmission and drinking water networks. Chairman of Commission V DPR RI Lazarus emphasized the need to ensure adequate refugee conditions for the community. Lazarus emphasized the importance of meeting the basic needs of refugees, from clean water, toilets, medicine, to basic necessities, and reminded the public to remain alert to the potential for further landslides. “Along the road from the airport to Sibolga, I saw that there are still many places that are susceptible to landslides. The condition of the refugee camps is still far from adequate and must be addressed immediately,” Lazarus said. (rdp/dhn)