People evacuate from flooded areas after heavy rains in Semarang, Central Java, Indonesia. (Photo: Xinhua/VNA)
Severe floods and landslides have battered Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia in recent days, causing widespread destruction, mass evacuations and a rising death toll across the region.
Days of relentless heavy rain have triggered widespread flooding and landslides across Indonesia’s Sumatra island, causing severe loss of life and property, forcing tens of thousands of people to evacuate, and prompting authorities to declare multiple disaster emergencies. As of the afternoon of November 27, the death toll had risen to 61.
In Aceh province, emergency status has been declared in 10 of its 23 districts and cities. Flash floods and landslides that began on November 18 have affected more than 14,200 households with nearly 47,000 people, forcing around 1,500 residents to flee their homes and leaving two people dead. Water levels in residential areas remain between 30 and 80 cm. Officials attributed the destruction to continuous heavy rainfall, strong winds and unstable geological conditions across both mountainous and coastal regions.
In North Sumatra, conditions are particularly dire in Central Tapanuli, where nearly 2,000 families have been affected and four members of a single family were killed in a landslide. In South Tapanuli, flash floods destroyed homes in several localities, killing at least six people and injuring seven in Parsariran. Coastal Sibolga city has also been hit hard, with eight confirmed dead and 21 still missing as of late November 26.
In West Sumatra, many areas, including Padang and West Pasaman, remain heavily inundated. Navy special units have been evacuating residents using inflatable boats, rescuing 40 people from Rantau Panjang village in West Pasaman alone.
Indonesia’s National Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas) has mobilised troops, police, rescue forces and volunteers to search for the missing and assist evacuations. In Sibolga, 555 soldiers have been deployed to prioritise search-and-rescue operations and clear landslide-blocked roads. Temporary shelters have been set up to provide emergency medical care and food for displaced residents.
The Indonesian government has convened an inter-ministerial emergency meeting to coordinate relief efforts and assess what is described as one of Sumatra’s most severe disasters this year. Military engineering units equipped with excavators, trucks, ambulances, inflatable boats, tents and field kitchens are working to reopen strategic routes.
Also on November 27, Thai government spokesman Siripong Angkasakulkiat said flooding in southern Thailand has claimed 55 lives. Rescue units deployed helicopters, specialised vehicles and prepared drones to deliver food and medicine to people stranded on rooftops as receding waters allowed more road-based evacuations.
Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul earlier declared an emergency in Songkhla province after prolonged heavy rain submerged Hat Yai district and surrounding areas. More than 1,200 people have been evacuated. Across the southern region, the floods have affected over 980,000 households with 2.7 million people.
Although floodwaters are receding in Malaysia, authorities warned of strong winds, heavy rains and rough seas through the weekend that could impact seven states. More than 34,000 people have been relocated to temporary shelters, while about 500 Malaysians remain stranded in Hat Yai. Some have been transported home by container trucks as smaller vehicles are unable to pass through deeply flooded areas.
VNA
