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loods were still engulfing areas across the country on Sunday, killing two children in a village in North Sumatra.

The victims, identified as Ilham and Ikram, were swept away by swift currents in South Securai village, Babalan district, Langkat regency on Sunday afternoon.

Ilham father'€™s Sumadi said the children were riding their bicycles near the flood location and slipped and fell in a hole and were swept away by the river current.

'€œThe swift current swept them down to the river. The were found dead by rescuers,'€ Sumardi told The Jakarta Post on Monday.

The victims were buried in their village on Monday.

Sumardi said the floods in the village frequently took place during the rainy season, hoping the government would pay attention to the flood problem in their village.

'€œThe recurring floods have claimed a lot of lives here,'€ he said.

On Monday, floods engulfing thousands of homes in a number of regions in North Sumatra started to recede, including in Langkat.

However, residents have complained about various sicknesses following the floods, including skin irritation.

They expressed difficulty in getting medication because of the lack of flood command posts.

'€œThe floods have started receding from Sunday morning, but many residents experience skin irritation from exposure to flood water. Unfortunately, medicine does not exist here,'€ said resident Kurniawan, of Tangkahan subdistrict, Medan Labuhan district.

Kurniawan expressed hope that the local administration would remain alert and provide medicine for affected residents, although the floods have receded.

Meanwhile, heavy rains have been pouring over the southern parts of Central Java for the past five days and floods are inevitable. The floods have hit a number of areas in Cilacap regency, Central Java, over the past four days.

No casualties have been reported yet, but thousands of homes and tens of thousands of hectares of rice fields have been swamped. Hundreds of families have evacuated as the floods have further expanded following incessant rain.

'€œWe have instructed district heads to evacuate affected residents. This is for the sake of their safety, although many of them refused to evacuate,'€ Cilacap Deputy Regent Ahmad Edi Susanto told the Post on Monday, adding that his office had set up a number of posts and public kitchens.

According to Susanto, the floods have hit Sidareja, Gandrungmangu, Kawunganten, Kedungreja, Majenang, Bantarsari, Karangpucung, Nusawungu and Kroya districts.

He said the floods had inundated around 4,000 homes from 30 cm to 70 cm of water. '€œThe worst-hit is Sidareja district, where 2,600 homes were reportedly engulfed in seven villages,'€ said Susanto.

Floods in Kroya district are still inundating the main Buntu-Kroya highway at the Cilacap-Banyumas border. Dozens of vehicles were trapped in congestion, as the water level reached up to 70 cm high.

According to him, around 500 residents have been sheltered at the Sidareja Military Command office, village halls and a number of safer areas.

Besides the damage to homes, the floods this year have also severely affected tens of thousands of farmers in the Cilacap regency, which is entering the planting season of late. Many farmers have expressed grief over the loss as their fields have turned into a sea of floodwater.