
ACTNews, MALANG
CITY – The rumbling sound that came from the river followed by the
chattering of the people talking about the flash flood made Yuli immediately
run away to safety. She first made sure that her children were able to evacuate
their father who suffers from stroke.
"So I didn't
think much about my house. I ran and went up to Senaputra evacuation site,"
said Yuli who lives in Rampal Celaket Village, Klojen District, Malang City.
Yuli felt deeply saddened when she saw her neighborhood ravaged by the flash flood. Her house which also functions as a grocery store was heavily damaged. Pieces of equipment that she uses for her business as well as the goods she sells were washed away.
Yuli’s house was damaged and several pieces of her furniture were
washed away by the flash flood on Thursday (11/4/2021). (ACTNews)
“The windows of my
house were shattered, and all of my belongings were swept by the flood
including my glass cabinet, fridge, stove, and gas cylinders. My goods were
also gone,” said Yuli.
As the head of her
Neighborhood Association (RT), she becomes even more saddened every time she
remembers that 74 other residents in her RT also suffer from the same calamity.
“When I first
arrived at this evacuation site, I lost my appetite for two days. I was
thinking about my children, my sick husband, and my neighbors. But I tried to smile,
thinking that Allah is the Most Bountiful, and he has other plans for me,” said
Yuli optimistically.
Yuli's Desire to Rebuild Her Business
Previously, Yuli
was one of the beneficiaries of Global Wakaf – ACT’s Waqf for MSMEs program.
She was able to make a turnover of IDR 500,000 a day. Sadly, the flash flood
has put her business to a halt.
Though she feels
deeply saddened to see her home and business decimated, she admitted that she
surrenders her fate to Allah. “Everything belongs to Allah. It’s not really mine
so that’s fine. If Allah has decreed, what can we do? I try to be patient and
not to show my sadness to my neighbors lest they will get sad,” said Yuli.
She hoped that, in
the aftermath of the disaster, she can rebuild her business. “I hope to be able
to rebuild my business because I have a family to support. I hope to be able to
rise again to provide the best for my people,” said Yuli. []