The recent flash floods in Batipuh village, located in West Sumatra, Indonesia, left a trail of destruction, damaging homes and a mosque, and cutting off road access. Source: Anadolu, Getty / Adi Prima

This disaster marks the deadliest natural event in Indonesia since the catastrophic 2018 earthquake and tsunami in Sulawesi, which claimed over 2,000 lives.

Blocked roads isolated many regions, while damage to telecommunications infrastructure severely disrupted communication. To overcome these challenges, relief and rescue operations employed helicopters to deliver essential supplies to those stranded in inaccessible areas.

In some parts, shops and offices have started to resume operations.

Officials said the extent of the damage in the worst-affected central region was only just being revealed as relief workers cleared roads blocked by fallen trees and mudslides.

The losses and damage are the worst in Sri Lanka since the devastating 2004 Asian tsunami that killed around 31,000 people there and left more than a million homeless.

Growing outcry in Thailand over flood response

Climate change has also increased the intensity of storms, and produced more heavy rain events because a warmer atmosphere holds more moisture.

This gymnasium in Hat Yai, southern Thailand, was used as an evacuation centre for people sheltering from widespread flooding late last week. Source: Getty / Sirachai Arunrugstichai

The waves of rain caused flooding that killed at least 176 people in southern Thailand, authorities said on Monday, one of the deadliest flood incidents in the country in a decade.