Philanthropist Saad Kassis Mohamed has initiated an emergency response for communities devastated by catastrophic flooding and landslides across northern Sumatra, focusing on shelter, clean water, medical supplies, and child assistance in the hardest hit districts.
The WeCare Foundation chairman announced the relief operation on Sunday as death tolls from the disaster reached 442, with more than 400 people still missing across North Sumatra, West Sumatra, and Aceh provinces. Tens of thousands of residents have been displaced from their homes following torrential rains that triggered deadly flash floods and landslides throughout the region.
Indonesia’s National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB) reported the confirmed death toll stands at 442, with authorities warning the number will likely continue rising as rescue teams reach isolated areas. Entire villages have been inundated or swept away, with roads, bridges, and communications infrastructure severely damaged.
WeCare’s response will supply emergency shelter kits, hygiene packs, safe water access through mobile treatment units, and support for temporary learning spaces so education can resume quickly once conditions allow. The initiative includes targeted support for community health posts and clinics serving displaced families, coordinated with local authorities and Indonesian civil society partners.
Kassis Mohamed said climate driven disasters represent lived reality for millions of families rather than distant headlines. He emphasized the organization’s first responsibility involves helping people survive the coming days and weeks with dignity through dry shelter, clean water, basic healthcare, and safe spaces for children while listening to local leaders about rebuilding needs.
Monsoon rains caused rivers to burst their banks in North Sumatra province Tuesday, tearing through mountainside villages, sweeping away people, and submerging more than 3,200 houses and buildings. About 3,000 displaced families fled to government shelters.
Initial WeCare teams and local partner organizations are mapping needs in the most affected regencies and prioritizing areas that remain cut off by damaged infrastructure. With thousands of families expected to remain displaced for weeks, the organization is preparing to transition from immediate relief to early recovery, including support for repairing homes, restoring community facilities, and helping small family businesses restart activities.
The extreme weather was driven by tropical cyclone Senyar, which formed in the Strait of Malacca. The cyclone intensified rainfall, strong winds, and high waves across Aceh, North Sumatra, West Sumatra, Riau, and nearby areas before dissipating. Indonesia’s Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysical Agency warned that unstable atmospheric conditions mean extreme weather could persist.
At least two areas on Sumatra island remain unreachable, with authorities struggling to deliver aid to Sibolga and Central Tapanuli. The BNPB deployed two warships from Jakarta to deliver supplies, with vessels expected to reach Sibolga by Monday. Videos on social media showed people scrambling through crumbling barricades, flooded roads, and broken glass to obtain food, medicine, and gas, with some wading through waist deep floodwaters to reach damaged convenience stores.
In Agam district in West Sumatra province, nearly 80 people were missing in three villages, buried under tons of mud and rocks. Relatives watched as rescuers pulled bodies from a buried house in Salareh Aia village. Images showed massive piles of logs washed ashore on West Sumatra’s Air Tawar Beach, sparking public concern over possible illegal logging that may have contributed to the disaster.
Flash floods in Bireuen district in Aceh caused nine bridges to collapse, paralyzing transportation from North Sumatra’s Medan city to Banda Aceh and forcing residents to cross rivers from village to village by boat. Authorities in Aceh province struggled to bring excavators and other heavy equipment over washed out roads after torrential rains sent mud and rocks crashing onto hilly hamlets.
West Sumatra’s disaster mitigation agency reported flooding submerged more than 17,000 homes, forcing about 23,000 residents to flee to temporary shelters. Rice fields, livestock, and public facilities were destroyed, with bridges and roads cut off by floods and landslides isolating residents. More than 500 people were injured in the disaster.
The Indonesian relief operation builds on WeCare Foundation’s broader humanitarian work supporting crisis affected communities across Africa, the Middle East, and other regions, with programs that link urgent relief to longer term investments in education, livelihoods, and community resilience.
WeCare Foundation, based in Cape Town, South Africa, focuses on sustainable development in underserved communities worldwide. Under Kassis Mohamed’s leadership, the organization has deployed funding to support critical projects across Central Africa, including the Darfur Water Renewal Project installing solar powered water purification systems and the Blue Nile Renewable Energy Initiative establishing mini solar grids for rural communities.
The foundation has coordinated emergency relief efforts previously, including response to the Mangaf fire in Kuwait in June 2024 that claimed 50 lives. Recent initiatives include early childhood development support in Armenia, delivery of 300 mobility devices to Zimbabwe and Uganda, and educational programs across multiple countries.
Kassis Mohamed, a Kuwaiti born philanthropist, received recognition in Forbes 30 Under 30 for social impact in March 2025. The foundation maintains focus on leveraging finance as a tool for positive social change through innovative funding models supporting ethical business practices and community empowerment.
Seasonal rains frequently cause flooding and landslides in Indonesia, an archipelago of 17,000 islands where millions of people live in mountainous areas or near fertile flood plains. Indonesia is frequently struck by earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and tsunamis because of its location on the Ring of Fire, an arc of volcanoes and fault lines in the Pacific Basin.
At least 600 people have died across Southeast Asia as heavy monsoon rains overwhelmed areas of Indonesia, Thailand, and Malaysia. Thailand reported at least 145 people killed across eight southern provinces, with more than 3.5 million people affected by floodwaters. Two people were killed in neighboring Malaysia.
