Meti Ismail still remembers the event that occurred in early June 2020. The 54-year-old housewife and her family had to leave their flooded home in the Bugis urbanward of Gorontalo city, as the banks of the Bone River, one of the main rivers that passes through Gorontalo Province, overflowed.<\/p>\t\t
Heavy rainfall in Bone Bolango District, where the upstream of Bone River is located was blamed for the flood that inundated parts of Gorontalo, including Meti’s house. The roof was the only structure that remained untouched by the muddy water.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhen the water started rising, we immediately pack up and left,\u201d Meti told Mongabay on October 7, 2021. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The flood was the biggest in the past decade and left Meti traumatized. Now, every time it rains, this mother of five will have trouble sleeping as she fears the flood would come again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
When the river water that enters her house reaches the calf of an adult, that’s a sign for Meti and her family to leave. Her house is perched on the ground, a meter away from the river bank.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMy kitchen wall is on the river embankment. So when flood hits, my kitchen is the first to be filled with flood water,\u201d said Meti.<\/p>\n\n\n\n