At Least 21 Dead, Hundreds Displaced as Flash Floods Leave Trail of Destruction in Indonesia

By Staff, Agencies

At least 21 died, two people went missing, and hundreds were displaced on Wednesday amid flash floods that hit Indonesia's South Sulawesi Province.

The floods were triggered by heavy rains on Monday.

On Wednesday, houses were seen being severely damaged and roads were covered in thick mud, as rescuers were looking for missing people in the Luwu Utara District, south of the island.

Officials said the flooding began on Monday evening after heavy rains caused three rivers to overflow. Thousands of people have been evacuated.

Earlier this year, record rains triggered flooding and landslides that killed nearly 70 people in and around Indonesia's capital, Jakarta, which is on neighboring Java Island. The Southeast Asian archipelago is regularly hit by floods during the rainy season.