In a devastating series of natural calamities across Indonesia's Sumatra island, flash floods and landslides have claimed at least 49 lives, with 67 individuals still unaccounted for as of November 27, 2025. Triggered by relentless monsoon rains and a rare tropical cyclone, the disasters have overwhelmed multiple provinces, displacing thousands and submerging vast areas. Emergency teams continue to scour rivers and debris-strewn villages in search of survivors, amid warnings of further extreme weather.

North Sumatra province has borne the brunt of the destruction, where rivers overflowed their banks following days of torrential downpours, sweeping away homes and infrastructure. Authorities reported 17 fatalities in South Tapanuli district, eight in Sibolga city, and additional deaths in Central Tapanuli, Pakpak Bharat, Humbang Hasundutan, and Nias island. The provincial police anticipate a rising death toll, as remote regions remain inaccessible due to blocked roads and communication blackouts.

Rescue operations are proceeding under challenging conditions, with personnel employing rubber boats, heavy machinery, and manual tools to navigate mud, rocks, and uprooted trees. Nearly 5,000 residents have sought refuge in government shelters, while up to 8,000 have been evacuated across affected zones. In an effort to mitigate additional rainfall, Indonesia's disaster management agency has initiated cloud seeding operations to redirect precipitation away from search areas, commencing on November 26, 2025.

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The crises extend beyond North Sumatra, impacting Aceh and West Sumatra provinces with severe flooding and landslides. In Central Aceh, nine bodies have been recovered following landslides that struck villages, displacing nearly 47,000 people and prompting calls for heavy equipment to extract those buried under debris. West Sumatra's Padang area saw six drownings amid floods that inundated over 3,300 homes, with 14 individuals presumed trapped in a hillside village cut off by landslides.

Compounding the tragedy, a magnitude 6.6 earthquake struck Simeulue Island off Sumatra's coast on Thursday, causing residents to evacuate buildings, though no immediate casualties or tsunami alerts were issued. Meteorological forecasts indicate continued heavy rains in Aceh and Riau over the next two days, heightening risks of further inundation and hampering relief efforts.

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