TORRENTIAL TERROR

Tropical Cyclone Leaves 76 Dead, Thousands Displaced in Indonesia and East Timor

The massive storm struck Indonesia and East Timor on Sunday, displacing thousands of people escaping from mudslides and flooding.

At least 76 people were killed and more than 40 remain missing after Tropical Cyclone Seroja triggered landslides and flooding in Indonesia’s East Nusa Tenggara province and East Timor on Sunday. More than 2,000 people were evacuated after bridges collapsed, trees fell, and mudslides swept the area, according to local media reports. At least one ship sank in high waves triggered by the cyclone, according to the local disaster agency BNPB. “We are using rubber boats to find bodies at sea,” Thomas Ola Langoday, head of the local Lembata government, told reporters Sunday. “In several villages, flash floods hit while people were sleeping.”