Weather tracker: Floods and landslides in Indonesia leave at least 20 dead | Indonesia

Heavy rain across Indonesia has caused major flooding. On Java, the country’s main island, flooding caused a landslidethat has killed more than 20 people, with several more missing. The landslide was triggered by particularly intense rainfall in the mountainous area close to Pekalongan in the central part of the island, leading to bridges collapsing and houses and cars being buried in the thick mud. Indonesia is vulnerable to flooding and landslides during its rainy season from November to April. However, the climate crisis appears to be increasing the intensity of the rainstorms, worsening the flooding, as well as allowing them to occur outside the usual season. Last May, 67 people died after torrential rain caused flash floods in West Sumatra.

In stark contrast, a winter drought has been affecting parts of Pakistan. Eastern areas of Punjab province, where crop farming is the main activity and source of income, have received rainfall more than 40% below the average in the last four months. Agriculture accounts for nearly 25% of the country’s GDP and employs nearly two in five workers. Many farmers are being forced to switch careers as the climate crisis brings increasingly unreliable rainfall during the winter months.

Parts of North America have been experiencing some bitterly cold weather, as Arctic air surged southwards earlier this week. On Wednesday, a major storm brought freezing rain and heavy snow across the southern US. Snow fell in places for the first time in many years, giving rare winter delight to those unaccustomed to seeing it first-hand, with the heaviest snow for decades along the Gulf coast and all-time snow records broken elsewhere. Seventeen centimetres (7in) of snow was recorded in the southern city of New Orleans, breaking the previous daily record set in 1948. The first-ever blizzard warning was issued in several counties of Louisiana and near Lafayette, and more than 25cm of snow fell. Temperatures dropped below the seasonal norm across large parts of the country with wind chill temperatures as low as -40C in some areas.

Five people were killed on an icy road in San Antonio, Texas, after a collision between a tractor-trailer and other vehicles. One person died from hypothermia in Georgia and another two died from the cold in Austin, Texas, with emergency services having to respond to dozens of calls related to exposure to the bitter cold. Meanwhile, more than 2,000 flights were cancelled across the US, while the country’s most southern interstate, I-10, was closed owing to snow and ice. PJM Interconnection, which supplies power to many of the eastern states said that there were record demands on electricity for heating in places, while 100,000 customers were left without any power at all on Wednesday morning.