Tornado damages over 112 houses in Malang Regency, East Java

A damaging tornado hit Sumbersekar village, Dau sub-district, Malang Regency, East Java, between 15:00–15:30 local time (LT) on November 2. It formed amid heavy rainfall and strong convective gusts, damaging homes across two hamlets and injuring one person.

According to the Malang Regency Disaster Management Agency (BPBD Malang), initial assessments recorded 112 damaged houses, while some outlets reported 115. Early reports listed smaller figures, including 33 homes in Dusun Krajan. BPBD confirmed that the damage was concentrated in Dusun Krajan and Dusun Semanding.

In Dusun Krajan, 9 houses were heavily damaged, 14 moderately damaged, and 57 lightly damaged. Dusun Semanding recorded 32 lightly damaged houses. Three public facilities: one community hall (Balai RT) and two small prayer halls (mushallas), also sustained light structural damage.

One 47-year-old resident from the Taman Sengkaling housing area in Dusun Semanding suffered injuries to her leg and abdomen from debris. She was treated locally and later discharged. BPBD confirmed that no fatalities occurred.

BPBD Malang distributed tarpaulins to cover damaged roofs and coordinated post-event cleanup with the military (TNI), police (Polri), and community volunteers. Field teams continued damage verification and debris removal through Monday, November 3.

Eyewitnesses described a dark, rotating cloud forming above the village shortly before the strong wind hit. BPBD Malang identified Dau sub-district as one of several areas in Malang Regency that are vulnerable to convective wind events, according to regional hazard mapping.

These short-lived tornadoes are common during transitional seasons in Indonesia when unstable atmospheric layers and strong updrafts generate local rotation within convective storm cells. As of this report, the Indonesian Agency for Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics (BMKG) is yet to classify the event as a tornado.

The incident in Malang occurred during a wider regional surge in hydrometeorological disasters across Java in the first week of November. The National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB) reported, through its Control and Operations Center (Pusdalops), that as of Sunday morning, November 2, flooding, strong winds, and heavy rain had affected multiple regions, including Bandung and Bekasi in West Java, as well as Magelang, Sleman, and Gunung Kidul in Central and Yogyakarta provinces.

BNPB urged communities and local authorities to maintain vigilance and implement simple mitigation measures such as pruning overgrown trees, reinforcing roofs and house structures, clearing drainage systems, and closely monitoring weather forecasts from relevant agencies.

References:

¹ 112 houses in Malang Regency damaged by tornadoes – ANTARA – November 3, 2025

Reet Kaur

I’m a science journalist and researcher at The Watchers, contributing to the Epicenter edition, where I cover peer-reviewed scientific research and emerging discoveries across Earth and space sciences. With a background in astronomy and a passion for environmental science, I’ve worked in shark and coral conservation in Fiji, conducting reef and shark-behavior research, contributing to mangrove restoration, and earning PADI Open Water and Coral Reef Certifications. I bring a blend of scientific rigor and storytelling to illuminate the discoveries shaping our planet and beyond.

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