November 30, 2025, 4:41 p.mNovember 30, 2025, 4:43 p.m
At least 442 people have died in devastating landslides and floods on the Indonesian island of Sumatra. According to information from the disaster management agency, more than 400 people remain missing and around 290,000 have become homeless in the provinces of Aceh, North Sumatra and West Sumatra.
The devastating floods have caused hundreds of deaths in Indonesia.Image: keystone
It has been raining non-stop for days. The heavy rain has led to flash floods and massive landslides. More than a million people are affected in Indonesia alone.
Other parts of Southeast Asia are also under water. Thailand and Malaysia are particularly affected. 170 people died in southern Thailand, reports the Bangkok Post, citing the authorities. The city of Hat Yai, an important trading metropolis, is particularly badly affected by the flood.
Many areas are difficult to access
The authorities said that entire regions of Sumatra were cut off from the outside world. In North Sumatra, residents in affected areas were forced to scavenge food and drinking water from supermarkets to survive, authorities said. Aid deliveries are progressing slowly due to the weather conditions and destroyed roads.
Some of the worst-hit areas can now only be reached by air or sea, Suharyanto, head of the disaster management agency, said at a news conference on Sunday. “We air-dropped food and supplies and deployed soldiers,” he said.
Incessant heavy rains had previously caused rivers to overflow, triggering flash floods and mudslides that swept through entire villages. Many houses, roads and bridges on the world’s sixth largest island were damaged.
Improvement in West Sumatra
In some regions, flooding has already receded, said Suharyanto. In West Sumatra, people have started cleaning their homes but continue to sleep in temporary shelters at night.
«The situation is improving. Telecommunications providers and the state-owned power utility have deployed personnel to restore networks and infrastructure,” Suharyanto said.
Extreme weather events are becoming more common
Indonesia regularly experiences extreme monsoon rains. Scientists warn that climate change is likely to further increase the frequency and intensity of such weather events.
Sumatra is almost as big as Germany, Austria and Switzerland combined and lies in the far west of the Southeast Asian island nation on the equator. Southeast of Sumatra lies the Indonesian main island of Java with its capital Jakarta. (dab/sda/dpa)