Helicopters were deployed to help search for survivors among the 72 missing persons so far in the East Nusa Tenggara Islands, where tropical cyclone Seroja caused high winds and heavy rainfall that triggered flash floods and landslides.
An amateur video made by a local official in the village of Tanjung Batu on Lembata Island, home to the Ile Lewotolok volcano, showed felled trees and large rocks from cold lava that had crushed homes after being driven off by the cyclone.
Authorities said the death toll could rise as rescue workers reach more remote areas. Images from the region on Monday showed downed trees, choppy seas, and wooden houses flattened by the storm and debris floating in muddy flood waters.
At least 8,424 people were displaced, nearly 2,000 buildings, including a hospital, were affected and more than 100 homes were badly damaged by the cyclone that crossed the Indian Ocean on Tuesday morning towards Northern Australia.
Dwikorita Karnawati, head of the weather agency, said once-rare tropical cyclones are more common in Indonesia and climate change may be to blame.
“Seroja is the first time we’ve seen a massive impact because it hit the country. It’s not common,” she told a news conference.
In the nearby province of West Nusa Tenggara, authorities said on Monday that two had died, while in neighboring East Timor at least 27 were killed.
Some residents of Lembata Island may have been washed into the sea by mud. The district deputy chief hoped help would come.
“We could only search on the coast, not in the deeper area, due to a lack of equipment yesterday,” Thomas Ola Langoday told Reuters by phone.
Lembata suffered a volcanic eruption last month, wiping out vegetation on top of the mountain, allowing hardened lava to slide into 300 homes when the cyclone hit, he said.
Langoday feared that many bodies were still buried under large rocks.
President Joko Widodo held a cabinet meeting on Tuesday to expedite evacuation and relief efforts and the restoration of power.
“If we can’t get there by road, I ask that we open access both by sea and air quickly,” the president said, adding that extreme weather had impeded relief efforts.
Search and rescue chief Doni Monardo said on Tuesday that help was on the way from the military and volunteers.
Monardo said there were health concerns about evacuation centers becoming overcrowded and authorities would provide prompt COVID-19 test kits to try and prevent an outbreak.