JAKARTA: Landslides triggered by torrential rains in Indonesia ’s Java island killed two people and left 21 others missing, officials said Friday. Rescuers are still searching for the 21 reported missing.
Several days of heavy rainfall in the region caused the landslides that hit dozens of houses in three villages in Indonesia’s Central Java province on Thursday evening, officials said in a statement.
“The unstable ground conditions posed a challenge for the search and rescue team in searching for victims during the golden hour. Nevertheless, the joint team continued their search and rescue efforts on Friday morning,” said National Disaster Management Agency spokesperson Abdul Muhari in the statement.
He added that heavy equipment was deployed to speed up the operation.
Footage released by the National Search and Rescue Agency showed rescuers searching for victims buried under the rubble of the houses. Rescuers are using heavy equipment, extraction tools and manual tools to reach difficult areas.
Heavy seasonal rain from about October to March frequently causes flooding and landslides in Indonesia, an archipelago of 17,000 islands where millions of people live in mountainous areas or near fertile floodplains.
In January, more than 20 residents were killed after being swept away in floods and landslides after torrential rains in Central Java province.