Indonesia: Flash floods and landslides kill at least 44, leave several injured

Indonesia flash floods: Landslides were triggered by torrential rain hours before Easter, sweeping Flores Island in the country's easternmost province.

At least 44 people were killed after flash floods and landslides swept an island in Indonesia's easternmost province Sunday morning, rescue officials said, adding they expected the toll to rise.

Residents inspect the damage at a village hit by a flash flood in East Flores, Indonesia, on Sunday, April 4, 2021. Landslides and flash floods from torrential rains in eastern Indonesia have killed a number of people and displaced thousands. (AP Photo/Ola Adonara)

"There are 44 people dead with nine injured" in East Flores regency, and "many are still under the mud", National Disaster Mitigation Agency spokesperson Raditya Jati told AFP.

Hours before people woke to celebrate Easter, torrential rain unleashed flash floods in the Catholic-majority Flores Island. Mud inundated homes, while bridges and roads in the eastern end of the island were destroyed, according to National Disaster Mitigation Agency spokesperson Raditya Jati. Rescuers are struggling to reach the remote and worst-hit area in East Flores regency. "The only access there is by the sea from Adonara Island, but the rains -- as well as strong waves -- have prevented any crossing," Jati told AFP on Sunday. Extreme weather is expected to continue in the coming week, he added.

Fatal landslides and flash floods are common across the Indonesian archipelago during the rainy season when downpours are frequent and relentless. In January, flash floods damaged the Indonesian town of Sumedang in West Java, killing 40 people. Last September, at least 11 people were killed in landslides on Borneo while a few months earlier, dozens died in landslides in Sulawesi. Indonesia's disaster agency has estimated that 125 million Indonesians -- nearly half of the country's population -- live in areas at risk of landslides.