Rescuers in Thailand readied drones on Thursday to airdrop food parcels, as receding floodwaters in the south and neighbouring Malaysia brightened hopes for the evacuation of those stranded for days, while cyclone havoc in Indonesia killed at least 28.
Severe floods after a week of heavy rain have killed at least 33 in Thailand and two in neighbouring Malaysia, with tens of thousands huddling in evacuation centres.
"It's a race against time," Thai government spokesperson Siripong Angkasakulkiat told Nation TV, adding that rescue teams were preparing to use drones to deliver food parcels.
The receding floodwaters are allowing disaster teams in Thailand and Malaysia to boost aid deliveries and efforts to move people out of waterlogged homes.
The floods affected nearly 3 million in nine southern Thai provinces, authorities said, with 3,000 moved to safety from the worst-hit city of Hat Yai, including some critically ill airlifted on Wednesday from a partially swamped hospital.
TROPICAL CYCLONE DEVASTATES INDONESIAN PROVINCE
In Indonesia's province of North Sumatra, a tropical cyclone unleashed floods and landslides to kill at least 28, with 10 missing.
Power outages and damaged bridges and homes hampered rescue efforts, the disaster agency said.
Meteorologists say current extremes of weather in Southeast Asia could stem from the interaction of two active systems, Typhoon Koto in the Philippines and the unusual formation of Cyclone Senyar in the Malacca Strait.
'THE WATER WAS LIKE THE OCEAN'
In Malaysia, with floods in seven states, authorities said more than 34,000 people were evacuated from areas, and about 500 nationals were still stranded in the Thai tourist destination of Hat Yai.
Container lorries were used to bring home some Malaysians, the foreign minister told parliament on Thursday, as smaller vehicles were unable to traverse the floodwaters.
In the smallest state of Perlis, Gon Qasim said rising waters trapped her in her home in the middle of a paddy field.
"The water was like the ocean," the 73-year-old evacuee said.
Teams in Hat Yai worked into the dark on Wednesday, racing to reach the stranded after more boats arrived for the rescue effort, navigating the challenges of both strong currents and shallows.
Start your day informed with AnewZ Morning Brief: here are the top news stories for the 17th of February, covering the latest developments you need to...
Former U.S. President Barack Obama said aliens are “real,” but emphasised that he never encountered any indication of extraterrestrial contact whi...
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said his government would not assist Australian families of suspected Islamic State (IS) militants return h...
President Donald Trump said he will be involved “indirectly” in nuclear negotiations between the United States and Iran scheduled for Tuesday in G...
The Pentagon has threatened to designate artificial intelligence firm Anthropic as a “supply chain risk” amid a dispute over the military use of i...
The death toll from last week’s landslide in Indonesia has climbed to 60 as search and rescue teams continued operations on the seventh day to locate 20 people still missing in West Java.
Indonesia's military stepped up its relief efforts in three provinces on Sumatra island that have been devastated by deadly floods and landslides, and the country's vice president apologised for shortcomings in the response to last week's disaster.
At least 12 people have died and 20 more were injured after a landslide struck Peru’s Amazon region, sinking two boats on the Ucayali River, local health authorities reported on Monday.
More than 600 people have died and over 4 million have been affected after a rare tropical storm brought a week of heavy rain, floods and landslides to Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia, as rescue teams struggle to reach isolated communities.
Iran’s Supreme National Security Council Secretary Ali Larijani said the United States could evaluate its own interests separately from those of Israel in ongoing negotiations between Tehran and Washington.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Sunday (15 February) called it “troubling” a report by five European allies blaming Russia for killing late Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny using a toxin from poison dart frogs.
Cuba’s fuel crisis has turned into a waste crisis, with rubbish piling up on most street corners in Havana as many collection trucks lack enough petrol to operate.
Norway is holding a commanding lead in the medal standings with 12 golds and a total of 26, with Italy having an historic performance on home soil on the ninth day of the Milano-Cortina Winter Olympics on Sunday (15 February).
Iran is pursuing a nuclear agreement with the U.S. that delivers economic benefits for both sides, an Iranian diplomat was reported as saying on Sunday (15 February), days before a second round of talks between Tehran and Washington.
The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday (12 February) announced the repeal of a scientific finding that greenhouse gas emissions endanger human health, and eliminated federal tailpipe emissions standards for cars and trucks.
Tropical Cyclone Gezani has killed at least 31 people and left four others missing after tearing through eastern Madagascar, the government said on Wednesday, with the island nation’s second-largest city bearing the brunt of the destruction.
Rivers and reservoirs across Spain and Portugal were on the verge of overflowing on Wednesday as a new weather front pounded the Iberian peninsula, compounding damage from last week's Storm Kristin.
Morocco has evacuated more than 100,000 people from four provinces after heavy rainfall triggered flash floods across several northern regions, the Interior Ministry said on Wednesday.
Greenland registered its warmest January on record, sharpening concerns over how fast-rising Arctic temperatures are reshaping core parts of the island’s economy.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment