Aidi Yursal

At Least 30 Believed Dead in North Sumatra Flash Flood

Medan. Flash floods that swept through as many as seven villages in North Sumatra just before predawn prayers on Tuesday are feared to have claimed at least 30 lives, with the number expected to climb.

Indra Sakti Nasution, a member of the Mandailing Natal district police, said initial reports from the scene of the disaster indicated at least four villages in Muara Batang Gadis subdistrict, located 600 kilometers from Medan, had been hit by the floods.

“There is as yet no list of the people presumed dead in the flash floods,” Indra said. “There is only a report from residents that at least 25 people were swept away in the floods, and the number will likely increase.”

Other media reports on Tuesday evening put the toll at 25 dead and 18 missing, with as many as seven villages understood to have been impacted after the Sulang Aling River burst its banks.

Indra said dozens of houses in the villages of Salebaru, Ranto Panjang, Lubuk Kapundung I and Lubuk Kapundung II had been washed away as people were inside preparing their predawn meals before prayers.

He said the disaster area could only be reached by helicopter because of the extensive damage to the road network.

Indra said the four villages were home to 800 families totaling some 2,000 residents, the fate of whom remained unknown because communication channels had been cut.

Details of what caused the rapid rise in water levels have yet to emerge, but the area has received several days of heavy and constant rain, causing several tributaries to overflow.

Two people died and dozens of houses were damaged when a flash flood struck at the foot of Mount Leuser in neighboring Aceh in July.

The flash flood carried logs along with mud, though the debris remained deposited largely outside residential areas.

In recent years, environmental activists have blamed similar flash floods in Southeast Aceh on unchecked illegal logging in Gunung Leuser National Park.

Amru Daulay, the head of Mandailing Natal district, was quoted by Antara news agency as saying that immediately after he was informed of the disaster, at 10:30 a.m., he held a disaster response meeting with related agencies and security personnel.

Daulay and other district officials then left for the disaster area to oversee the delivery of aid to victims. However, as of Tuesday night, they were still stranded in Natal subdistrict because the road to Muara Batang Gadis had been washed out.

“The disaster was so sudden,” Daulay was quoted as saying. “The area had never [before] been flooded although it receives a lot of rainfall.”

The National Agency for Disaster Control (BNPB), meanwhile, has sent supplies and a team to determine the amount of aid needed by flood victims, Antara reported.

“The team from the Ministry of Social Affairs and the [BNPB] has been sent there with initial cash aid of Rp 250 million [$25,000],” BNPB chief Syamsul Maarif was quoted as saying.

“The situation there is still under control,” he said. “The evacuees can also be dealt with by the regional administration.”

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