SEREMBAN: Six out of seven Malaysians identified as stranded due to flood and landslide disasters affecting West Sumatra, North Sumatra and Aceh in Indonesia have safely returned to Malaysia, with one individual still reported missing as of Friday (Dec 19).
Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Mohamad Hasan said his ministry, through the Malaysian Consulate General in Medan, continues to closely monitor developments and coordinate response efforts related to the disasters.
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"The search for the missing victim, Asrul Nizam Apridwson, has now entered its 23rd day, and there has been no latest update from the Indonesian authorities,” he told reporters after attending the Khatan Perdana programme at Taman Pinggiran Senawang here on Saturday (Dec 20).
Meanwhile, Mohamad said that with regard to the status of students, Education Malaysia in Jakarta reported that as of Dec 16, a total of 49 Malaysian students were in Aceh, of whom 24 remain there while the other 25 have safely returned to Malaysia.
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"Our students in Aceh are safe, and the Higher Education Ministry has also extended financial assistance of RM500 to affected Malaysian students in Indonesia,” he said.
Mohamad said that Indonesia’s National Agency for Disaster Management reported 1,071 deaths, with 185 people still missing and more than 525,868 residents displaced to temporary shelters as of Friday due to the disaster.
He added that Indonesia has also estimated the total cost of recovery and reconstruction efforts for the three affected provinces to exceed RM12.7mil (51.82 trillion rupiah). — Bernama
