A powerful earthquake and tsunami left widespread devastation across parts of Indonesia as rescue teams continued to struggle on Saturday to reach isolated communities cut off by landslides, damaged bridges, and collapsed communication networks. With access routes severely disrupted, aircraft have been delivering essential aid to Central Tapanuli in North Sumatra and other affected districts.
The National Disaster Management Agency confirmed that more bodies were recovered in West Sumatra’s Agam district, raising the official death toll to 248. Authorities warn that the number is likely to increase further, as more than 100 people remain unaccounted for and several worst-hit locations have yet to be reached by ground teams.
Monsoon-driven rains over the past week have compounded the disaster, causing rivers to overflow and triggering destructive flash floods that swept through mountainside settlements. Entire neighbourhoods were submerged or washed away, and thousands of houses and public buildings have been damaged or destroyed.
Nearly 3,000 displaced families are now sheltering in government relief camps, where emergency supplies and medical support are being distributed. Rescue operations are continuing under difficult conditions as authorities race to locate survivors and recover the missing.
