Floods in Bali Claim Several Lives and Paralyze Movement in Indonesia

Heavy floods hit the tourist island of Bali in Indonesia this week, resulting in the deaths of at least 6 people and causing near-total paralysis of traffic, according to authorities announced on Wednesday.

Neuman Sidakarya, head of the search and rescue agency in Bali, explained that the heavy rains that began on Tuesday evening and continued until Wednesday morning caused the collapse of two buildings in Denpasar, the capital of the island, leading to the death of four people.

In the Jembrana area in the west of the island, the disaster management agency reported the deaths of two other people, while 85 individuals were evacuated from flood-affected areas.

Suharianto, head of the disaster management agency, confirmed that the floods continued until Wednesday morning, amid warnings of worsening conditions in the coming hours.

Officials noted that access to Bali's international airport, located near Denpasar, has become extremely difficult, as the roads are only passable for trucks, leading to disruptions in air and ground traffic in one of the world's busiest tourist destinations.

Meanwhile, videos circulating on social media _which Reuters could not verify_ documented terrifying scenes of floods sweeping through main roads, causing a complete standstill in traffic.

Sidakarya revealed that about 200 rescue personnel have been deployed in the affected areas in an attempt to reach those stranded and open the roads.

The disaster was not limited to Bali alone, as its effects extended to the East Nusa Tenggara region, where four people lost their lives due to floods caused by the same rainstorm.

This natural disaster comes at a sensitive time, as Bali's airport had previously canceled 24 flights in recent days due to a volcanic eruption, before flights were resumed later.

Indonesian authorities continue to monitor the situation on the ground, amid warnings of renewed floods and calls to avoid non-essential travel to the island at this time.