1st LD: Floods force nearly 3,000 to flee home in Aceh, Indonesia

Nearly 3,000 people have been displaced as floods hit Nagan Raya district of Aceh province in western Indonesia, a disaster agency official said on Sunday evening.

Waters of two rivers overflowed banks and submerged several villages in Tripa Makmur and Darul Makmur sub-districts by up to two meters high, said Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, spokesman of the national disaster management agency.

"Most of the communities have taken shelters at makeshift tents and relatives' houses," he told Xinhua via phone.

Activities were paralyzed, especially in villages which has been isolated by water, Sutopo said.

The floods also cut electricity and hampered transportation, disturbing distribution of aids, the spokesman added.

A number of emergency relief assistance, however, has been channeled to flood affected-persons, he said.

Seasonal downpours have often incurred floods each year in Indonesia, a chain of 17,500 islands where millions of people live in vulnerable flood plains that are near to rivers. Endit