Devastating floods in Indonesia force one million into shelters as death toll from floods tops 600

A catastrophic flooding event, triggered by heavy monsoon rains and a rare tropical storm, has resulted in the death toll across Indonesia’s Sumatra Island has risen to 631, confirmed by the country’s disaster agency, as one million people were evacuated from hazardous regions.

Heavy monsoon rains and tropical cyclones have demolished parts of Asia including Indonesia, Sri Lanka and Southern Thailand killing more than 1,160 people across the region.

The recent incident has severely affected infrastructure and swamped towns.

3.2 million people have been affected by the floods in Indonesia, while 2,600 have been injured and 472 people remain missing.

The Indonesian government said on Monday that it was sending 34,000 tons of rice and 6.8m litres of cooking oil to Aceh, as well as the provinces of North Sumatra and West Sumatra.

The World Health Organization has been efficiently working to deploy teams to ensure critical supplies and public health monitoring in the region.

Meanwhile, survivors staying in evacuation shelters have shared their experience of how torrent floodwaters arrived rapidly and submerged villages.

In this connection, Gahista Zahira Cahyani, 17, a student at an Islamic boarding school said, “We didn't think we would survive that night because the situation was so chaotic. There was no prior warning whatsoever before the water came.”

The season’s monsoons bring heavy rains that can provoke landslides and floods, but this year's cloudbursts were exacerbated by a rare tropical storm formed in the Malacca Strait, aggravating parts of Sumatra and Southern Thailand, where 176 people were killed.

Nonetheless, the recent event, largely attributed to extreme weather conditions, underscores the need to prepare for frequent and extreme events effectively.