Record Rainfall Triggers Deadly Floods and Landslides in Dawei District

Torrential rains battering Taninthayi Region's Dawei District since September 25 have unleashed devastating flash floods and landslides, leaving at least three dead, several missing, and thousands stranded amid widespread communication outages. On September 27, Dawei recorded a historic 11.02 inches of rainfall, marking the area’s highest single-day record in 80 years.

The disaster has battered multiple townships across the district. In Launglon Township, more than 20 villages are grappling with flooding and mudslides, with landslides burying approximately 30 homes in Kayingyi village and cutting off road access to communities like Kyauknimaw. Floodwaters have simultaneously submerged dozens of villages along Union Highway No. 8 in Thayetchaung Township and inundated urban wards across Dawei town—swamping the regional government compound and submerging the ground floors of homes in neighborhoods that had never previously flooded.

Local volunteer groups are carrying out urgent search-and-rescue operations, while additional relief teams from neighbouring Mon and Kayin states are deploying to the disaster zones to assist trapped residents as downpours continue.