Millions of people have been affected by heavy rains in Sri Lanka and large parts of Sumatra in Indonesia, southern Thailand and northern Malaysia. Sri Lanka and Indonesia have deployed military personnel to help victims of floods that have killed more than 1.100 people in four Asian countries.
In Indonesia, at least 604 people have died and 464 are missing, according to the national disaster agency. The death toll in Sri Lanka stands at 366 dead and 366 missing, while 176 have died in Thailand. Three deaths have been reported in Malaysia, The Guardian reports.
Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto said during a visit to North Sumatra province on Monday that "the worst is over, we hope," adding that the government was focusing on providing aid.
Three warships and two ships carrying medical personnel, as well as aircraft, have been sent to deliver aid to the worst-affected areas, where rescue efforts have been hampered by blocked roads, collapsed bridges and cut communication lines.
The floods are the deadliest event in Indonesia since the 2018 earthquake and tsunami that killed more than 2,000 people in Sulawesi.
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They have flooded homes, destroyed agricultural fields and caused landslides across the region, although the true extent of the damage is not yet clear.
Sri Lanka has declared a state of emergency and requested international assistance after Cyclone Ditwah, which forced 148,000 people to evacuate to temporary shelters.
Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, who declared a state of emergency to deal with the disaster, vowed to rebuild the country.
"We are facing the largest and most challenging natural disaster in our history. Without a doubt, we will build a better nation than the one that existed before," he said.
The losses and damage are the worst in Sri Lanka since the devastating Asian tsunami in 2004, which killed an estimated 31,000 people and left more than 1 million homeless.
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Military helicopters have been used to transport stranded people and distribute food, although one of them crashed north of Colombo on Sunday evening.
Meanwhile in Thailand, Deputy Prime Minister Thamanat Prompow visited Hat Yai, one of the worst-hit areas, on Monday. He said provincial water and power authorities had been ordered to restore services immediately.
Local media reported that 80% of people in Hat Yai had returned to their homes from evacuation centers to view the damage, while recovery and cleanup operations were underway.
The region's monsoon season often brings heavy rainfall that can cause landslides and flash floods, but recent flooding in Southeast Asia has been worsened by a rare tropical storm forming in the Strait of Malacca.
In addition to the destruction, the storm has disrupted education, leaving tens of thousands of children out of school in Indonesia and Thailand, according to the international organization Save the Children.
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The organization said at least 1,000 schools have been damaged and closed in Sumatra, Indonesia. Classes have been suspended as some schools are being used as emergency shelters.
