Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia begin clean-up after floods

The death toll from devastating floods and landslides in Southeast Asia climbed past 400 on Nov 29 as cleanup and search and rescue operations got under way in Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia.

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Heavy monsoon rain overwhelmed swathes of the three countries this week, killing hundreds and leaving thousands stranded, many on rooftops awaiting rescue.

Rescuers in Indonesia were struggling to reach the worst affected areas of Sumatra island, where more than 270 people were still missing.

Flooding and landslides in Indonesia have killed more than 300 people, according to figures from the disaster authorities.

Of those, 166 were in North Sumatra province, 90 were in West Sumatra, and 47 were in Aceh.

Tens of thousands of people have been evacuated, although access to many parts of those three provinces remains cut off, National Disaster agency head Suharyanto said.

He told a news conference that a cloud seeding operation would begin in West Sumatra to reduce the rainfall, which had mostly subsided by Nov 29.

Ms Novia, 30, a resident of Pidie in Aceh, said: “The water in our house has receded, but the entire place is covered in mud. Some of the items in the house are damaged or have fallen, and we haven't been able to clean them yet.

“We, the community, are working together to clean up the mud.”