Nikon has released a statement concerning the flooding in Thailand where their consumer DSLR plant is located. The plant has been closed since October 6th and the first floor is completely flooded. It is unknown how much damage was sustained or when the plant will return to normal operation. While many lives have been lost in the flooding, it's unknown yet whether that also included any Nikon employees.
The Thailand plant has been in operation for a couple of decades now, expanded many times, and is where Nikon builds their consumer DSLRs (currently D3100, D5100, D7000, and D300s). Some consumer lenses are also assembled there. Of Nikon's 4 million plus DSLRs made a year, most of them are made in that Thai plant, which is located in Rojana Industrial Park. Sony makes some Alpha cameras at a nearby plant, and Canon also has an assembly facility there. Quite a few Japanese electronics (and auto) manufacturers have facilities in that park.
Of the Nikon cameras made in Thailand, only the D7000 has been in very tight supply lately, so it's possible that the actual disruption to inventory in stores around the world may be small and temporary. That said, Nikon almost certainly lost a lot of work in progress and parts in the flooding. The plant has a production capacity that has to be approaching 300,000 camera units a month, so considerable inventory would have been in the plant, especially considering the time of year. We could see shortages of any or all Nikon DSLRs in the coming months.
Suffice it to say this has been a difficult year for Nikon. They started with tight supply of product and high demand, and they've been through a series of serious natural disasters in both Thailand and Japan that impact their ability to maintain supply, let alone increase it. Once again, we offer our heartfelt sympathy to our Nikon friends and wish them much success in their recovery efforts. Likewise, to the Thai people: our thoughts are with you in this time of crisis.