More than 70 dead in floods in Indonesia and East Timor

 Sylvie Claire / April 5, 2021

More than 70 people have died and dozens more are still missing in floods and landslides in Indonesia and East Timor, local officials said Monday

There are 55 dead, but this toll is still changing, especially since 42 people are still missing, Raditya Jati, the spokesman for Indonesia's disaster management agency, told reporters

At least 16 people have died in East Timor, according to a Timorese official.

Floods and flash floods caused by torrential rains have caused chaos on the islands between Flores, Indonesia, and East Timor, forcing thousands of people to seek shelter in reception centers.

This deluge caused water tanks to overflow and flooded thousands of homes.

Landslides and flash floods are common in the Indonesian archipelago, especially during the rainy season. But environmentalists point out that deforestation is contributing to these disasters.

In January, 40 Indonesians died in floods that hit the city of Sumedang in West Java.

The national disaster management agency estimates that 125 million Indonesians, or about half of the archipelago's population, live in landslide-prone areas.