Hundreds of houses in eight villages in Morowali regency, Central Sulawesi, have been inundated by floods in the past week, disrupting transportation and damaging plantations.

The floods, which affected more than 1,000 houses in the district of Petasia, located 640 kilometers from the provincial capital Palu, damaged hundreds of hectares of ready-to-harvest rice and corn fields as well as cacao and vegetable farms.

No casualties were reported in the disaster as all affected residents had been evacuated to safety. School students midway through a national exam had to be relocated to the district of Kolonodale, which was not affected by the floods, to continue their three-day tests.

Morowali Regent Datlin Tamalagi told The Jakarta Post by phone Thursday that the flood occurred following the overflowing of the La'a River in Sampolowo village.

"In the past several days, heavy downpours have hit Morowali and caused the river to overflow, flooding the villages nearby," Datlin said.

He said he has visited the flood-hit areas and provided emergency assistance, including food and drinking water.

Titin, a resident of Petasia village, said her family must now relocate to Kolonodale.

"When we left the house, the floodwater reached 1.5 meters high," she said.

The floods have also been blamed on logging activities being conducted by at least 15 companies holding timber processing licenses.

Executive director of the Central Sulawesi chapter of the Indonesian Forum for the Environment, Supardi Lassaming, said many of the companies cut trees beyond the boundaries specified in their permits.

Residents have reported the illegal logging activities to the related government offices, but have received no response.

"But it seems like the reports are being ignored," Supardi said.

Morowali Regent Datlin said he has not received any such reports, and that it was likely they were not sent to his office.

"I'll check with the forestry office. If there is such report, the office's head will be punished," he said.

©Jakarta Post