A tidal wave of over 2 metres flooded parts of Jakarta overnight as the city government and citizens raced to hold the water back with emergency embankments, a government official said on Wednesday. The height of the water was far greater than earlier predicted. The World Bank, which has been monitoring flooding and tidal waves in Jakarta, warned last week of a 1.2 metre tidal surge in parts of the city. Authorities in the capital, home to more than 10 million people, had been bracing for high tides with sand bags and wire netting filled with stones. The tidal wave swamped areas near the coast for a few hours, leaving hundreds of people stranded in their homes, but the main highway leading to the airport was not affected. The water has receded, but officials said another tidal wave is expected tonight. "The flood waters entered my house last night. In the house it reached my calf, and outside it is even worse, up to an adult's thigh," Nursanti, 28, who lives in Muara Baru area near the coast in northern Jakarta, told reporters.