Death toll from devastating floods in Indonesia exceeds 900

The death toll from recent floods in Indonesia has exceeded 900, and hundreds of people are still missing.

More than 100,000 homes were destroyed last week when a rare and powerful cyclone formed over the Malaca Strait, causing torrential rains and landslides in parts of the Southeast Asian country.

Efforts to reach people in still isolated areas continue, with aid expected to be airdropped in some locations.

Floods in Indonesia are one of several extreme weather events to hit Asia in recent weeks, with the cumulative death toll in Sri Lanka, Thailand, Malaysia and Vietnam approaching 2,000 people.

In Aceh Tamiang, one of Indonesia’s hardest-hit regions, survivors described villages being completely swept away by rapid deluges.

A survivor from the village of Lintang Bawah told the BBC Indonesian service that people survived by sitting on the roof of their homes.

Fitriana said: “There are also those who survived on the roofs of their houses with their four-year-old children, for three days without eating or drinking.”

She said about 90 percent of the homes in her village were destroyed, leaving 300 families with nowhere to go.

One man described how he and his family were evacuated by boat when floodwaters flooded his house up to the second floor, only to have to flee again to a nearby village.

He said: “That night, while we were sleeping, the water suddenly soaked the mattresses we were sleeping on. [in Gampoeng Dalam Village]. But we couldn’t go anywhere else, because there was no higher ground.

“Luckily my daughter-in-law’s house was split-level. So we went upstairs and that’s where we survived.”

The region’s governor said response teams were still searching for bodies in “waist-deep” mud, according to the AFP news agency.

He said: “Many people are in need of basic necessities. Many areas remain untouched in remote areas of Aceh.

“People don’t die from floods, they die from hunger. That’s how it is.”

Indonesian media reported that inmates were released from a prison when floodwaters threatened to engulf the facility, with officials saying there was nowhere to send them.

Land access to two areas, the town of Sibolga and central Tapanuli, remained cut off on Sunday, with aid only able to reach them by air and sea, respectively.

Looting was reported at supermarkets in some areas.