Officials claim that 279 people are missing, 80,000 have been evacuated, and thousands are trapped throughout three Sumatra provinces.
The death toll from floods and landslides caused by cyclonic storms on the Indonesian island of Sumatra has grown to 303, the head of the country’s disaster mitigation agency said on Saturday, up from 174 previously.
For the past week, large portions of Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand have been inundated with cyclone-fueled heavy rain, with a rare tropical storm building in the Malacca Strait.
Suharyanto, the agency’s president, told journalists that at least 279 people are still missing, despite the fact that over 80,000 people have been evacuated and hundreds remain stranded in three provinces throughout Sumatra island, Indonesia’s westernmost territory.
Responders have employed helicopters to provide aid and logistics in the island’s north, which has been struck worst by landslides, cutting off roads and destroying communications infrastructure.
“We are trying to open the route from North Tapanuli to Sibolga (in North Sumatra province), which is the most severely cut off for a third day,” he informed reporters.
He also stated that rescue workers were attempting to break through a road blockage caused by a landslip, and that people were stuck on a length of road and in need of supplies. The military presence would be increased on Sunday to assist with relief efforts, he stated.
Those devastated by the rain attempted to ransack stores in the heavily damaged Central Tapanuli region, he added.
Across the Malacca Strait in Thailand, the death toll from flooding in the country’s south has grown to 162, according to government spokesperson Siripong Angkasakulkiat, up from 145 previously.