At least 13 people have been reported to be killed in flash floods and landslides due to continuous torrential rain in North Sulawesi province of Indonesia.
According to National Disaster Mitigation Agency of Indonesia spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, People and rescuers in Sangihe district of North Sulawesi province dug through debris with their bare hands and shovels and pulled two bodies from the mud while 11 others were found in the water late Wednesday.
Rivers in five other districts of the province were overflowing which led to more than 1000 houses being flooded. About 40000 people have fled to temporary shelters.
A low pressure in southern Philippines brought torrential rain. Besides this low pressure, the convergence of the impact of low pressure in North Australia which is pushing the clouds to North Sulawesi territory is also a reason for continuous rain.
Indonesia, an archipelago of more than 17,000 islands witnesses seasonal downpours that often bring floods and landslides in Indonesia. Indonesia is home to 240 million people.
Photograph by Voice of America
