The dry season and drought in Indonesia will not be as severe as that witnessed in South Korea, Head of the Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) Dwikorita Karnawati said on Wednesday.
The BMKG has predicted that the peak of the dry season in Indonesia will occur in the last week of August 2023, and it will be triggered by the El Nino phenomenon.
"(Based on) the calculation of sea surface temperature, in Indonesia, it is relatively the lowest, whereas, in other countries, the level could be higher," she informed after attending the plenary cabinet session at the Presidential Palace in Jakarta on Wednesday.
According to Karnawati, the conditions during the peak dry season this year would be similar to those seen during the 2019 drought, but they will not be as bad as those witnessed in 2015 when the dry season was worsened by forest and land fires.
"Indeed, the rivers have begun to dry up. But if we look at it globally, the intensity or level of El Nino in Indonesia is relatively low ... We are benefited because we have the sea," she stated.
"This is a global phenomenon that occurs not only in Indonesia, but also in other countries such as India, Thailand, and Vietnam. As we are at the lowest level (of El Nino), the impact will not be as severe as in other countries," she added.
The recent heatwave in South Korea has caused at least 25 deaths and disrupted the holding of the 25th World Scout Jamboree in the Saemangeum reclamation area on the country's southwest coast.
The Indonesian contingent of 1,569 scouts was evacuated on Tuesday (August 8) from the jamboree campsite because of Typhoon Khanun, which is expected to make landfall on August 9–10.
With extreme heat hitting South Korea, temperatures in parts of the country are topping 38–40 degrees Celsius during the day.
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Editor : Mahdani
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