Devastating Indonesia Floods Cause Critical Food and Medical Shortages as Death Toll Nears 1,000

Indonesia is currently facing severe shortages of food and medical supplies in regions devastated by catastrophic floods that have claimed hundreds of lives, according to authorities. On Monday, elephants were brought in to assist with clearing debris in affected areas.

Southeast and South Asia have been battered by tropical storms and monsoon rains this month, triggering destructive landslides and flash floods from Indonesia's western Sumatra island rainforests to highland plantations in Sri Lanka.

Muzakir Manaf, governor of Indonesia's Aceh province, expressed concern about resource shortages on Sunday evening: "Everything is lacking, especially medical personnel. We are short on doctors."

According to Indonesia's national disaster mitigation agency (BNPB), the death toll has reached 961 across Aceh, North Sumatra, and West Sumatra provinces, with 293 individuals still missing. The agency reported that over one million people have been displaced by the disaster.

In Sri Lanka, authorities have deployed thousands of additional military personnel to support recovery operations following a devastating cyclone that caused widespread destruction and killed 635 people.

In Pidie Jaya, one of Aceh's worst-affected districts, four elephants from a nearby training facility were helping clear large pieces of rubble and move stranded vehicles.

"We brought four elephants to clear the debris from the houses of the communities that were swept away by the flood," explained Hadi Sofyan, head of a local conservation agency, to AFP. "Our target is to clean the debris near the residents' houses so they can access their homes," he added, noting that the elephants would continue assisting throughout the week.

The heavy rainfall and subsequent landslides across western Indonesia have injured at least 5,000 people and severely damaged infrastructure, including educational facilities and hospitals.

In Banda Aceh city, residents formed long queues for drinking water and fuel, while prices of essential items such as eggs have surged dramatically, according to an AFP correspondent.

The BNPB estimated late Sunday that reconstruction costs following the disaster could reach 51.82 trillion rupiah (approximately $3.1 billion).

In Sri Lanka, Cyclone Ditwah—the most severe to hit the island this century—has affected over two million people, nearly 10 percent of the country's population.

The Disaster Management Centre (DMC) has warned of additional heavy monsoon rains this week, potentially exceeding five centimeters in many areas, and issued alerts for possible landslides.

Army chief Lasantha Rodrigo announced that 38,500 security personnel have been deployed to strengthen recovery and clean-up efforts in flood and landslide-affected regions, nearly doubling the initial deployment. "Since the disaster, security forces have been able to rescue 31,116 people who were in distress," Rodrigo stated.

President Anura Kumara Dissanayake introduced a recovery package offering 10 million rupees ($33,000) to help victims purchase land in safer locations and rebuild their homes.

The government has also committed to providing livelihood support and financial assistance for essential household items including kitchen utensils, bedding, and food.

The total cost of this relief package remains unclear, particularly challenging for a government still recovering from a 2022 economic crisis when foreign exchange reserves were depleted, preventing even essential imports.

President Dissanayake has acknowledged that the government cannot fund reconstruction independently and has requested international assistance, including from the International Monetary Fund.

While seasonal monsoon rains are a normal part of life in South and Southeast Asia—nourishing rice fields and other important crops—climate change is making these weather patterns increasingly erratic, unpredictable, and deadly throughout these regions.