https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/nov/30/indonesia-thailand-floods
"Authorities in Sri Lanka, Indonesia and Thailand are racing to clear debris
and find hundreds of missing people after more than 900 died in devastating
floods and landslides across the south of Asia.
In the latest example of the impact of the climate crisis on storm patterns and
extreme weather, heavy monsoon rains, exacerbated by a tropical storm, have
overwhelmed parts of south-east Asia in recent days, leaving thousands of
people stranded without shelter or critical supplies.
Meanwhile, in Sri Lanka in south Asia, the death toll from floods and
landslides caused by Cyclone Ditwah rose sharply on Sunday to 334, with many
more still missing and low-lying areas of the capital, Colombo, under water,
authorities said.
It is the worst natural disaster to hit the island in two decades since the
devastating 2004 tsunami that killed about 31,000 people there and left more
than a million homeless.
President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, who has declared a state of emergency,
vowed to build back with international support. “We are facing the largest and
most challenging natural disaster in our history,” he said in an address to the
nation. “Certainly, we will build a better nation than what existed before.”
In Indonesia, officials said more than 442 people had died and a further 402
were missing as authorities attempted to reach some of the hardest-hit areas of
Sumatra island, where thousands of people were stranded without critical
supplies.
“The water just rose up into the house and we were afraid, so we fled. Then we
came back on Friday, and the house was gone, destroyed,” Afrianti, 41, who only
goes by one name, told
Reuters in West Sumatra’s capital, Padang, where she
was sheltering.
She and her family of nine had made a tent shelter beside the single wall that
remained of their home. “My home and business are gone, the shop is gone.
Nothing remains. I can only live near this one remaining wall,” she said.
At least two areas of Sumatra island were still unreachable on Sunday, and
authorities said they had deployed two warships from Jakarta to deliver aid."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
