Indonesia rescuers search for survivors as landslide kills 19

Indonesia rescuers search for survivors as landslide kills 19
By Nur Rahman
Pekalongan, Indonesia (AFP) Jan 22, 2025

Hundreds of rescuers were searching through thick mud and debris to find survivors Wednesday after a rain-triggered landslide in Indonesia killed at least 19 people and left seven missing.

Intense rainfall in a mountainous area near Pekalongan city in Central Java province sparked the landslide on Monday, collapsing bridges and burying cars and houses.

The worst hit area was Kasimpar village according to a local official, with survivors recounting the horror of the landslide crashing into a coffee shop where people were sheltering from the rain.

"Suddenly there was a sound of an explosion from inside the cafe. So the land exploded. Suddenly it all destroyed, everything in the cafe was rolled up," Nasiri, who like many Indonesians goes by one name, told AFP while lying on a stretcher at a health centre.

"When I woke up, I was around 200 metres from the place, rolled up with rock, soil, water."

Rescuers found two bodies Wednesday morning, raising the toll to 19, said Abdul Muhari, a spokesman for the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB).

Search and rescue agency Basarnas said in a statement that 13 people were also injured.

Heavy machinery was deployed to clear road access for search teams and around 200 rescue personnel have been sent to help the rescue effort, local official Mohammad Yulian Akbar said.

"The focus is to search for the victims," he said, adding that the local government had declared an emergency in the district for two weeks.

- Landslide-prone -

Police, soldiers and volunteers have joined the search alongside rescue workers, which is taking place around 90 kilometres (60 miles) west of the city of Semarang.

But efforts were intermittently suspended Tuesday as heavy rain continued to pound the area.

The weather forecast for the next three days suggests moderate rain that could "cause floods, flash floods and landslides", warned Muhari on Tuesday.

Indonesia is prone to landslides during the rainy season, typically between November and April.

In November, flooding triggered by intense rains in western Indonesia killed 27 people.

But some disasters caused by adverse weather have taken place outside that season in recent years. Climate change has also increased the intensity of storms, leading to heavier rains, flash floods and stronger gusts.

In May, at least 67 people died after heavy rains caused flash floods in West Sumatra, pushing a mixture of ash, sand, and pebbles from the eruption of Mount Marapi into residential areas.