At least 13 residents were reported dead and two were missing..."Manado, North Sulawesi (ANTARA News) - The joint Search and Rescue (SAR) team on Thursday found a dead victim of the floods, which have hit Manado, North Sulawesi, since Wednesday.
The victim, named Soni Lowing (50), was found in the Sario River, Tanjung Batu Village at 12.30 p.m. local time. He was a resident of the Ranotana Weru Village, Lingkuang Satu.
"The victim was found at 12.30 Wita (Middle Indonesian Standard Time)," Demsi Salomon, a member of the SAR team stated.
The victim was dragged away by the flood waters at around 11 a.m. Wita on Wednesday.
Incessant, torrential rains during the past several days led to floods and landslides on Wednesday (Jan. 15) which affected several regions in North Sulawesi such as the Manado City (provincial capital of North Sulawesi), Minahasa District, North Minahasa District, and Tomohon City.
According to the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB), at least 40 thousand residents have been displaced due to flash flooding and landslides in the North Sulawesi region.
Head of Information Center of BNPB Sutopo Purwo Nugroho noted in a press release, on Thursday, that the floods affected six districts in North Sulawesi: Manado, North Minahasa, Tomohon, Minahasa, South Minahasa, and Sangihe Islands.
"At least 13 residents were reported dead and two were missing, while another 40 thousand have sought refuge," Nugroho claimed.
Around one thousand residents from three villages in the North Minahasa district were isolated and cut off from road access as a result of the floods and landslides.
The landslides also buried several houses in the Sangihe islands.
"Heavy downpours were triggered by a low-pressure system that developed over the southern Philippines waters, which resulted in the formation of intense clouds, while the low pressure over northern Australia caused massive cloud formation that moved towards the North Sulawesi region," Nugroho explained.
Four major rivers in Manado had overflowed and the water washed away dozens of houses and vehicles.
On Wednesday, hundreds of houses were submerged in flood waters reaching a height of 2.5 meters, following 11 hours of incessant rains in Manado.
Singkil Sub-District Head Herry Saptono reported that more than 200 houses in his area were inundated with one to 2.5-meter deep water. He also added that the flood victims had been evacuated, particularly women and children, to higher ground.
(Uu.A014/INE/KR-BSR/F001)
Editor: Priyambodo RH
Copyright © ANTARA 2014
