Flood-damaged homes are seen in Kuala Simpang village in Aceh Tamiang, North Sumatra on December 2, 2025.
| Photo Credit: AFP

Rescuers carry the body of a flood victim in Agam, West Sumatra, Indonesia, on November 30, 2025.
| Photo Credit: AP

Rescuers searched on Thursday (November 27, 2025) in rivers and the rubble of villages for bodies, and when possible survivors, after flash floods and landslides on Indonesia’s Sumatra island left 49 people dead and 67 missing.

Monsoon rains over the past week caused rivers to burst their banks in North Sumatra province Tuesday. The deluge tore through mountainside village, swept away people and submerged more than 2,000 houses and buildings, the National Disaster Management Agency said. Nearly 5,000 residents fled to government shelters.

Seventeen bodies were recovered by Thursday (November 27) in South Tapanuli district and eight bodies in Sibolga city, North Sumatra provincial police’s spokesperson Ferry Walintukan said in a statement. In the neighbouring district of Central Tapanuli, landslides hit several homes, killing at least a family of four.

Rescue workers also recovered two bodies in Pakpak Bharat district and were searching for five people reported missing in Humbang Hasundutan, another district devastated by landslides that killed two villagers, Mr. Walintukan said. At least one resident died when mud and debris struck a main road on a tiny Nias island, he added.

“With many missing and some remote areas still unreachable, the death toll was likely to rise,” Mr. Walintukan said.

More downpours were forecast for North Sumatra province and the danger of extreme rainfall will continue until next week, Indonesia’s Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency said.

It recommended weather modification to reduce rain, and disaster agency chief Suharyanto said cloud seeding would be done to prevent further rainfall and floods.

“We are deploying weather modification technology starting tomorrow so that rain does not fall during this emergency response period,” Mr. Suharyanto, who goes by a single name like many Indonesians, told reporters before visiting flood- and landslide-hit areas of Sibolga city on Thursday (November 27).

Cloud seeding involves dispersing particles into clouds to create precipitation, which would be done to redirect rainfall away from areas where search and rescue efforts were continuing.

Television reports showed rescue personnel using jackhammers, circular saws, farm tools and sometimes their bare hands to dig in areas marked by thick mud, rocks and uprooted trees. Rescuers in rubber boats were searching through a river and helped children and older people who were forced onto the roofs of flooded homes and buildings.

Deadly floods hit other provinces on Sumatra island

Floods were also occurring elsewhere in the vast archipelago, including in Aceh and West Sumatra, where hundreds of houses were flooded, many up to roofs, the disaster agency said.

Rescuers by Thursday (November 27) recovered at least nine bodies after landslides triggered by torrential rains struck three villages in Central Aceh on Wednesday, said the district chief Halili Yoga, who called on the local disaster agency to deploy and excavator to pull out at least two people buried under mud.

Aceh’s Disaster Mitigation Agency said nearly 47,000 people were displaced by floods in the province, forcing about 1,500 residents to flee to temporary shelters.

In West Sumatra province, rescue teams pulled six bodies of people who drowned in floods in Lumin Park residential area in the provincial capital of Padang, the local disaster agency reported. The flooding submerged more than 3,300 houses in Padang Pariaman district.

The local agency said rescuers were searching for 14 people believed to be buried under mud and rocks that hit hilly Jorong Toboh village, while landslides also cut off bridges and blocked main roads, isolating some residents.

Heavy seasonal rain from about October to March frequently causes flooding and landslides in Indonesia, an archipelago of 17,000 islands where millions of people live in mountainous areas or near fertile floodplains.

Published – November 27, 2025 03:11 pm IST

Men inspect the damage following a flood in Badung, Bali, Indonesia, on Friday, Sept. 12, 2025.
| Photo Credit: AP

Rescuers search for missing people after a landslide that killed a number of people and left some others missing in Karo, North Sumatra, Indonesia, Monday, November 25, 2024.
| Photo Credit: AP

Rescuers in Indonesia recovered 16 bodies under tons of mud and rocks or that were swept away in flash floods that hit mountainside villages on Sumatra Island, officials said Monday (November 25,2024).

Six people are still missing, officials said.

Mud, rocks and trees tumbled down a mountain after torrential rains over the weekend and rivers burst their banks, tearing through four hilly districts in North Sumatra province, washing away houses and destroying farms.

Police, soldiers and rescue workers used excavators, farm equipment and their bare hands to sift through the rubble looking for the dead and missing in Semangat Gunung, a resort area in Karo district, said Juspri M. Nadeak, who heads the local disaster management agency.

Rescuers recovered six bodies after a landslide hit two houses and a cottage late Sunday, he said. Nine injured people managed to escape, he said. Rescuers on Monday were still searching for four missing people, including two children.

Rescuers on Sunday (November 24, 2024) pulled two bodies from a river after flash floods swept away at least 10 houses and damaged about 150 houses and buildings in villages in South Tapanuli district, said Puput Mashuri, who heads the local disaster management agency.

Dozens of people were injured by the flash floods, which also destroyed more than 130 hectares (321 acres) of agricultural land and plantations.

Flash floods on Sunday left four people dead in Deli Serdang district and rescue workers on Monday were searching for two people who were swept away by flash floods and are still missing.

A landslide hit several houses in Harang Julu, a mountainside village in Padang Lawas district, said Mustari, the chief of the local search and rescue agency, who like many Indonesians goes by a single name.

Rescuers late Saturday pulled out the bodies of a four-member family, including two children, and rescued at least three injured people from the devastated village, he said.

Television reports showed relatives wailing as they watched rescuers pull mud-caked bodies from a room at a buried house in Harang Julu village.

Seasonal rain from about October to March frequently causes flooding and landslides in Indonesia, an archipelago of 17,000 islands where millions of people live in mountainous areas or near fertile flood plains.

Last December, 12 people were swept away to Lake Toba or buried under tons of mud after heavy rains triggered flash flood and landslide in mountainside villages in North Sumatra province. Only one of them was found dead and 11 others remain unaccounted for.

The 1,145-square-kilometer Lake Toba, formed out of an ancient super volcano, is a popular sightseeing destination on the island of Sumatra and an area the government aims to develop as a magnet for international tourists.

Rescuers put the body of a victim of a flash flood on a gurney at a local community health center in Padang Pariaman, West Sumatra, Indonesia, on May 12, 2024.
| Photo Credit: AP

Heavy rain brought floods and landslides to Indonesia’s province of West Sumatra, killing at least 28, with four still missing, authorities said on May 12.

“There are 28 people killed, and we are still searching for four others who are missing,” Abdul Malik, the chief of the provincial rescue team, told Reuters.

The national disaster management agency BNPB said in a statement that flooding since Saturday night had brought mud to the Tanah Datar regency, affecting five sub-districts.

BNPB said its latest assessment showed 84 housing units and 16 bridges were affected by the disaster, adding that heavy equipment had been deployed to speed up the clearing of road access.

In this Friday, May 3, 2024, photo released by the Wajo Regional Disaster Management Agency (BPBD Wajo), rescuers carry people affected by a flood in Wajo, South Sulawesi, Indonesia. A flood and a landslide hit Indonesia’s Sulawesi island, killing a number of people, officials said Saturday.
| Photo Credit: AP

A flood and a landslide hit Indonesia’s Sulawesi island, killing 14 people, officials said Saturday.

Torrential rain pounding the area since Thursday triggered a landslide in Luwu district in South Sulawesi province, said local rescue chief Mexianus Bekabel.

Floods up to 3 metres (10 feet) have affected 13 sub-districts as water and mud covered the area. More than 1,000 houses were affected, with 42 of them swept off their foundations.

A search and rescue team worked to evacuate residents using rubber boats and other vehicles. More than 100 residents have been moved to mosques or relatives’ houses outside the affected area, National Disaster Management Agency spokesperson Abdul Muhari said Saturday.

Seasonal downpours cause frequent landslides and floods in Indonesia, a chain of 17,000 islands where millions of people live in mountainous areas or in fertile floodplains.

Torrential rains in April triggered landslides and killed 20 people in Tana Toraja district of South Sulawesi province.

A landslide and floods swept away dozens of houses and destroyed a hotel near Lake Toba on Sumatra in December, killing at least two people. Image for representation purposes only. File
| Photo Credit: Reuters

The death toll from flash flooding and landslides on the Indonesian island of Sumatra has risen to 21, an official said March 10, with six people still missing.

Torrential rains on Thursday triggered the disaster in Pesisir Selatan regency in the West Sumatra province, with more than 75,000 people forced to evacuate.

“As of Sunday, 21 people were found dead and six people remained missing,” Fajar Sukma, an official from West Sumatra disaster mitigation agency, told AFP by phone on Sunday.

A village located on a hillside in the Sutera subdistrict was struck hard, with around 200 families in the area left isolated after a landslide followed by flash flooding, Mr. Fajar said.

A local official earlier put the death toll at 18 with five missing.

Rescuers were searching for the missing on Sunday as authorities focused their operation on three areas affected by the disasters, local search and rescue official Abdul Malik said.

“Today’s search involves around 150 people from disaster organisations in West Sumatra,” Mr. Abdul said in a statement.

Doni Gusrizal, a senior official from the Pesisir Selatan disaster mitigation agency, said waters had started to recede after the flooding, but added that access to areas affected by the landslide remained difficult because of hilly terrain.

In the Padang Pariaman regency, also in West Sumatra, heavy downpours earlier this week caused rivers to overflow and triggered floods and a landslide, killing at least three people, according to a statement from the local disaster agency.

Indonesia is prone to landslides during the rainy season and the problem has been aggravated in some places by deforestation, with prolonged torrential rain causing flooding in some areas of the archipelago nation.

A landslide and floods swept away dozens of houses and destroyed a hotel near Lake Toba on Sumatra in December, killing at least two people.

Jakarta:

At least 18 people were killed and five others were missing after flash floods and a landslide on the Indonesian island of Sumatra, a local official said Saturday in a new toll.

Torrential rains triggered the floods and landslide that hit Pesisir Selatan regency in West Sumatra province, forcing around 46,000 people to evacuate to temporary shelters.

“Eighteen people were found dead. Five were missing,” Pesisir Selatan disaster mitigation agency acting head Doni Gusrizal told AFP late Saturday.

The official updated the toll from 10 he gave in an earlier statement.

Doni said debris from the disasters had hampered ongoing rescue efforts. 

“The impact from the floods (was) extraordinary. Currently we are cleaning the road… Our vehicles cannot pass through,” he said.  

As of late Saturday, electricity services were still down in several parts of Pesisir Selatan after the disaster, according to an AFP reporter in the regency. 

At least 14 houses were buried in the landslide, more than 20,000 houses were flooded and eight bridges had collapsed, according to earlier statement from the national disaster mitigation agency.

In Padang Pariaman regency, also in West Sumatra, heavy downpours between Thursday and Friday caused rivers to overflow and triggered floods and a landslide, killing at least three people, according to a statement from the local disaster mitigation agency.

Indonesia is prone to landslides during the rainy season and the problem has been aggravated in some places by deforestation, with prolonged torrential rain causing flooding in some areas of the archipelago nation.

A landslide and floods swept away dozens of houses and destroyed a hotel near Lake Toba on Sumatra in December, killing at least two people.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)