At least 42 people are missing after landslide in West Java, with 23 deaths confirmed among Indonesian marine force.
Massive search underway for dozens missing in deadly Indonesia landslide
The death toll from a landslide in Indonesia’s West Java over the weekend has risen to more than 20, as search-and-rescue operations continue for at least 42 people who have been reported missing, according to officials.
Heavy rainfall began on Saturday, hitting a marine training camp and engulfing houses in Pasirlangu village on the slopes of Mount Burangrang.
Among the confirmed dead are 23 members of Indonesia’s elite marine force who were training for a long operation on the Indonesia-Papua New Guinea border, a navy spokesperson said, according to the Reuters news agency.
The Navy earlier listed the number of deaths among the marines as four. It was not clear whether the 23 marines have been included in the official death toll counted by Indonesia’s disaster mitigation agency, according to Reuters.
Agency spokesperson Abdul Muhari said that, as of Tuesday afternoon, 20 people have been confirmed dead, up from 17 a day earlier.
First Admiral Tunggul, a Navy spokesperson, said bad weather had triggered the landslide on Saturday.
“The incident occurred due to extreme weather conditions with heavy rainfall, which caused a landslide at the training site,” said Tunggul, who goes by only one name.
West Java’s governor, Dedi Mulyadi, blamed the disaster on plantations around Pasirlangu, mostly used to grow vegetables, and pledged to relocate residents in a statement.
Access to the area has also been challenging as the ground remains unstable, according to government officials.
Ade Dian Permana, who heads the local search and rescue office, told reporters on Monday that the ground was “still very unstable and mixed with water”, hindering rescue teams’ ability to move far.
Rescuers were digging through mud, rocks and uprooted trees, said Yudhi Bramantyo, the operation director of the National Search and Rescue Agency. He said that, in some places in the province, the mud reached up to eight metres (26 feet).
Aep Saepudin, who has been coming to the village daily for updates about his 11 missing family members, including his sister, told the AFP news agency that it was “impossible that they are still alive”.
“I just want their bodies to be found,” he said, adding, “My heart aches. I feel so sad seeing my older sister like that [buried by the landslide].”
According to the local disaster agency, more than 50 houses have been severely damaged by the landslide, displacing more than 650 people.
Rescuer Rifaldi Ashabi, 25, told AFP that crews are concerned about the risk of subsequent landslides as they use heavy machinery and manually dig to search for residents.