A catastrophic wave of floods and landslides on the Indonesian island of Sumatra has led to the evacuation of around one million residents, as the death toll continues its grim climb. On Tuesday, officials confirmed that at least 708 people have died, while 504 remain missing.
The disaster stems from unusually intense monsoon rains — compounded by a rare tropical storm in the Malacca Strait — which battered the provinces of Aceh, North Sumatra and West Sumatra over the past week. According to the country’s disaster agency, some 3.2 million people have been affected, and around 2,600 sustained injuries.
Rescue operations are being severely challenged as floodwaters and landslides have washed away roads and destroyed bridges, cutting off access to many rural and mountainous areas. In some zones of North Sumatra and Aceh, relief teams have been unable to reach isolated villages.
The scale of the tragedy has triggered urgent humanitarian efforts. Supplies of rice and cooking oil — 34,000 tonnes of rice and 6.8 million litres of cooking oil — have been dispatched to the worst-hit regions, while an international relief agency has provided 12 tonnes of emergency food aid to address soaring shortages and surging prices.
Health and disease risks are also on the rise. The World Health Organization (WHO) has deployed rapid-response teams to the affected areas and heightened disease surveillance, warning that such extreme weather — exacerbated by climate change — increases the likelihood of outbreaks triggered by contaminated water, poor sanitation and crowded shelters.
Amid the chaos, survivors have recounted harrowing experiences. In Aceh, a 17-year-old student said she and many others fled their boarding school at night when floodwaters surged without warning — some clinging to trees and the roof of their mosque to escape the deluge. Hundreds of her peers ran for shelter, their lives upended in a matter of hours.
This disaster is part of a wider pattern of severe weather striking Southeast Asia. Alongside Indonesia, neighbouring countries such as southern Thailand and Sri Lanka have also been battered by flooding and landslides. Sri Lanka alone has seen hundreds of casualties and has declared a state of emergency.
As rescue teams continue to race against time to reach remote communities, the full extent of destruction remains unknown. The floods have left tens of thousands displaced, many without basic necessities, and triggered deep concerns about food security, public health, and long-term recovery for millions across the region.
