Indonesian rescue members search for victims at the site of a landslide in Pasirlangu village, West Bandung, West Java province, Indonesia, January 26, 2026.
| Photo Credit: Reuters

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

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.

In this photo released by the Indonesian National Search and Rescue Agency (BASARNAS), rescuers prepare to head out to the site of a landslide that killed a number of people, in Suwawa on Sulawesi Island, Indonesia on July 8, 2024. Photo: BASARNAS via AP

Rescue workers searched for dozens of missing people on July 9, digging through tons of mud and the rubble left by a landslide that hit an unauthorised traditional gold mining area on Indonesia’s Sulawesi island and killed at least 11 people.

More than 100 villagers were digging for grains of gold on July 7 in the remote and hilly village of Bone Bolango when tons of mud plunged down the surrounding hills and buried their makeshift camps, said Heriyanto, head of the provincial Search and Rescue Office.

Rescue operations

Rescuers recovered six more bodies buried under tons of mud in a devastated hamlet where the gold mine is located.

“Improved weather allowed us to recover more bodies,” said Heriyanto, who goes by a single name, like many Indonesians.

According to data released on July 9 by his office, some 52 villagers managed to escape from landslide, about 23 people were pulled out alive by rescuers, including 18 injured, and 17 bodies were recovered, including three women and a 4-year-old boy. Some 45 others are missing, it said.

National Disaster Management Agency spokesperson Abdul Muhari said torrential rains that have pounded the mountainous district since July 6 triggered the landslide and broke an embankment, causing floods up to the roofs of houses in five villages in Bone Bolango, which is part of a mountainous district in Gorontalo Province. Nearly 300 houses were affected and more than 1,000 people fled for safety

Challenging Rescue Operations Amid Adverse Conditions

Authorities deployed more than 200 rescuers, including police and military personnel, with heavy equipment to search for the dead and missing in a rescue operation that has been hampered by heavy rains, unstable soil, and the rugged, forested terrain, said Afifuddin Ilahude, a local rescue official.

“With many missing and some remote areas still unreachable, the death toll was likely to rise,” Mr. Ilahude said, adding that sniffer dogs were also being mobilized in the search.

Videos released by the National Search and Rescue Agency show rescue personnel using farm tools and sometimes their bare hands, pulling a mud-caked body from the thick mud before placing it in a black bag to take away for burial.

Monsoon rains cause frequent landslides and flash floods in Indonesia, an archipelago nation of more than 17,000 islands where millions of people live in mountainous areas or near floodplains.

Informal mining operations in Indonesia

Informal mining operations are common in Indonesia, providing a tenuous livelihood to thousands who labour in conditions with a high risk of serious injury or death. Landslides, flooding and collapses of tunnels are just some of the hazards facing miners. Much of gold ore processing involves highly toxic mercury and cyanide and workers frequently use little or no protection.

The country’s last major mining-related accident occurred in April 2022, when a landslide crashed onto an illegal traditional gold mine in North Sumatra’s Mandailing Natal district, killing 12 women who were looking for gold.

In February 2019, a makeshift wooden structure in an illegal gold mine in North Sulawesi province collapsed due to shifting soil and the large number of mining holes. More than 40 people were buried and died.

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.