PADANG, INDONESIA – Deaths from last week’s devastating floods and landslides in parts of Asia have exceeded 1,500, as rescue teams continue struggling to reach survivors trapped by the disaster, with hundreds still missing across the region. The catastrophe has sparked warnings that decades of deforestation caused by unchecked development, mining, and palm oil plantations may have intensified the destruction, prompting growing calls for government action.
In Indonesia, 837 deaths have been confirmed, while Sri Lanka reported 479 fatalities, Thailand 185, and Malaysia three. Many villages remain buried under mud and debris, and 861 people are still unaccounted for in Indonesia and Sri Lanka alone. Thousands face severe shortages of food and clean water as roads, bridges, and telecommunications networks have been destroyed, leaving communities cut off. Images from Indonesian television revealed large quantities of felled timber carried downstream in North Sumatra, West Sumatra, and Aceh provinces, highlighting the role of illegal logging and deforestation in worsening the disaster. Environmental groups warn that loss of forest cover has stripped natural protections, leaving small river basins dangerously exposed and vulnerable to heavy rainfall. President Prabowo Subianto pledged reforms to prevent further forest destruction, while authorities launched investigations into companies suspected of exacerbating the flooding through mining and energy projects.