Typhoon 4109

Typhoon 4109 was a record-breaking extremely severe Pacific tropical cyclone that caused a swath of catastrophic destruction across Southeast Asia in 2041. The most notable damage occurred on the island of Borneo, where Typhoon 4109 was exacerbated by deforestation and other environmental degradation.

In the aftermath, the Suryanto government was condemned for its apparent lack of preparation and coordination among government agencies in the relief effort. Indonesia suffered ¥1.9 trillion in direct economic losses due to the impact of Typhoon 4109, with many parts of the country remaining in recovery to pre-typhoon levels.

ImpactPermalink

Typhoon 4109 started as a tropical depression and was upgraded to typhoon status on June 4th 2041. It crossed over the centre of Java, Indonesia on June 5th 2041, causing scattered power outages and damaging or destroying at least 6,000 houses due to mudslides or storm surges, particularly in Semarang. ^[1]

On June 7th 2041, Typhoon 4109 travelled along the east coast of Borneo after having stalled and strengthened in the Java Sea for almost 48 hours. This area of the island had been significantly developed due to the transplanting of Indonesia’s capital to Sotek, resulting in immense damage to both human-built structures and the degraded environment. ^[2]

Storm surges as high as 20 metres destroyed numerous coastal villages, with a section of coastline large enough to be noticeable in satellite images eventually breaking off. Due to logging upslope and the paving of extensive areas for industrial and transport activities, the storm surge was met with flooding coming down from the mountains. Sotek and nearby Balikpapan were both caught in this destructive flooding with catastrophic consequences. ^[3] Every airport on the southeast side of the island was closed for a month, although some military aircraft were able to land with aid.

While direct damages were in the billions, the cost to Indonesia’s economy was estimated at ¥1.3 trillion and has since climbed to ¥1.9 trillion. The government of then-President Denny Suryanto vowed to rebuild Sotek, but lost the 2044 election in part because of its perceived mishandling of the crisis. Commercial and financial activity largely reverted to Java, centred around Bandung on the outskirts of submerged Jakarta. ^[4]

AftermathPermalink

Indonesia initially refused all offers of international aid, preferring to rely only on national capacity. Although local disaster response teams were at the time considered some of the best in the world, they were stretched beyond their limits due to the wide area affected by the flooding and the surprisingly devastating impact of the combined storm surge and off-flow.

On June 15th 2041, the Suryanto government changed policy and invited select international responders, which led to criticism from the international community for having waited so long, and from nationalist groups for allowing foreign organisations in at all. In a widely ridiculed response, a spokesperson for the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) claimed that “the extent of the damages was not clear at the outset, and if we had understood the conditions accurately, we would have made better decisions.” ^[5]

Effect on industryPermalink

The disaster had a wide-ranging effect on Indonesian industry and exports. Rice harvests were impacted and the regional price soared. Timber production on Borneo fell drastically and has never recovered to pre-typhoon levels due to combined labour and environmental organisation in the aftermath. Some industrial capacity was also damaged, with reports that the Tata factory near Banjarmasin lost all vehicles and equipment, delaying the production of trucks. A number of palm oil processing facilities were also shut down, most of them permanently. ^[6]

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The most significant industrial repercussions resulted from the damage to Sanial’s neural colloid manufacturing facility located just outside Sotek. ^[7] When the typhoon-triggered flooding hit on June 7th 2041, Zhupao and the Suryanto government were reportedly negotiating the construction of four additional Sanial facilities near Sotek.

President Suryanto attempted to sign the follow-up deal anyway, adding additional incentives and rent-free land for the new factories. Zhupao decided it would take too long to make Borneo viable again and that other locations in Indonesia would also be at risk of natural hazards, eventually moving Sanial’s manufacturing capacity to Sri Lanka. ^[8]

See alsoPermalink

• Sanial

ReferencesPermalink