T

housands of people have fled their homes after a series of natural disasters hit several regions in the country over the past several days.

In the North Sumatra provincial capital of Medan, floodwater reaching 1-meter-deep inundated thousands of homes in eight districts on Wednesday following heavy rain that poured over the region from Tuesday evening to Wednesday morning.

Among the affected districts were Medan Johor, Medan Baru, Maimun and Medan Marelan.

Floodwater also inundated a number of public facilities such as schools and universities, including the North Sumatra University (USU) compound.

The local authority was forced to temporarily shut down schools as floodwater had yet to subside at 10:30 a.m. local time. National Teachers Day celebrations scheduled be held at schools were also canceled.

'€œThis is a special gift for us on Teachers Day. No ceremonies, no activities can be conducted because the whole school compound is inundated,'€ the principal of SMP 10 Medan state junior high school, Rajo Batubara, said.

Markus Sebayang of Medan Baru said water from the overflowing Babura River had begun entering his house shortly after midnight.

'€œWe immediately moved to higher ground to avoid the flooding,'€ said Markus, who as of Wednesday afternoon remained at a nearby evacuation center with his family.

Medan Disaster Mitigation Agency (BPBD) head Hanna Lore Simanjuntak said that the agency had been distributing aid, including food and tents, and had set up health posts in all affected areas.

Floodwater also inundated on Wednesday thousands of houses in the neighboring Binjai municipality amid heavy downpours.

The 1-meter deep floods in Binjai resulted in a number of motorized vehicles getting submerged in water as the owners had no time to move them. The flooding also damaged home appliances and electronic devices.

In West Sumatra, heavy rain triggered a landslide on a road connecting Padang and Bukittinggi on the East Malalak section in Agam regency on Wednesday morning.

Agam BPBD head Bambang Warsito said that the landslide had caused traffic congestion on the road section for about six hours while debris was being cleared.

Jl. Malalak is an alternative Padang-Bukittinggi route operated to help manage traffic congestion on the main route, which passes through Lembah Anai. Parts of the alternative route, however, are prone to landslides during the rainy season.

Meanwhile, in North Maluku, thousands of residents of West Halmahera regency fled their homes following a series of earthquakes measuring less than 4.0 on the Richter scale that have rocked the region since last week.

More than 9,000 residents from 19 subdistricts in Jailolo, the regency'€™s capital, had been living in evacuation shelters since after the first quake hit the regency on Nov. 16, Kompas reported.

Almost 300 homes were severely damaged in Bobanehena subdistrict, one of the worst-hit areas. More than 1,500 villagers have also fled to a nearby hill in anticipation of more quakes.