JAKARTA: Flash storms and a disaster struck Indonesia’s Sumatra area over the weekend, killing at least 16 persons, the federal disaster agency said.
In North Sumatra province, the military and rescue personnel have been dispatched to the four afflicted areas.
” In total, 16 people died and seven more people are missing”, the spokesman of the National Disaster Mitigation Agency or BNPB, Abdul Muhari, said in a statement on Monday ( Nov 25 ).
Five people were killed and five more are still missing after flooding hit a beach location on Saturday, in Karo region.
The rest of the patients are spread in three other towns in the state: Deli Serdang, South Tapanuli, and Padang Lawas.
Homes, temples and public services were even damaged.
According to Muhari, flash floods and landslides have frequently occurred in Deli Serdang and Karo.
” This year alone, these two towns have been hit by hazard three times and twice respectively”, he said.
He advised Indonesians to stay away from water-related outside tourist destinations during the rainy winter.
Specialists claim that climate change has increased the likelihood of a string of recent extreme weather events in Indonesia.
At least 67 people died in May when charcoal, dust, and pebbles from the Mount Marapi volcano in West Sumatra were strewn into residential places, causing flash floods.