Prepare the raincoats and trim the tree branches at home, because the Meteorology and Geophysics Agency (BMG) warned on Tuesday of strong winds coupled with torrential rain that will hit the city in the coming days.

A senior climatologist with the agency, Achmad Zakir, has forecasted heavy downpours above normal precipitation levels to occur between Jan. 5 and Jan. 9.

Zakir said 'seeds of the storm', which are expected to appear in the Gulf of Carpentaria in Northern Australia, are likely to reach the shores of Java and Nusa Tenggara, including Greater Jakarta.

"Strong winds will be accompanied by heavy rain, worse than the winds and rains of the past few weeks," said Zakir, alluding to weather that toppled many trees across the capital.

In the last incident, strong winds were reportedly a factor in the collapse of a mosque tower in Koja, North Jakarta, that killed four construction workers and injured 21 others.

Strong winds and heavy rains also ripped through the roof of the dilapidated Budi Asih Hospital in East Jakarta last month, forcing the evacuation of patients to other hospitals nearby.

According to Zakir, precipitation levels in the uphill areas of Puncak in Bogor, West Java, has currently reached 23 millimeters (mm) per day and inundated Depok streets, higher than the 11 mm and 15 mm per day in Jakarta.

"I am afraid that any heavy downpour could be above the level of 50 mm per day," he said.

Jakarta is in great danger of flooding when precipitation levels in the city remain above 50 mm per day for three consecutive days.

With 40 percent of the city below sea level and 78 locations across the capital being prone to flood, mostly in North Jakarta, Jakarta will find it difficult to pump out the floodwaters. Worse still, the city's poor drainage systems means that inundations recede slowly.

Last year, floods swamped some parts of the city, causing one death and forcing 20,000 residents to flee their homes.