ZCZC
BFF-23
INDONESIA-LANDSLIDE
Indonesia landslide death toll reaches 32: official
JAKARTA, Jan 7, 2019 (BSS/AFP) – At least 32 people were killed by a
landslide in Indonesia on New Year’s Eve, authorities said Monday as they
ended a week-long search for missing victims.
Rescuers who have been pulling bodies from mountains of mud called off the
search with one person still unaccounted for after heavy rains triggered the
deadly slides in West Java province.
Several others were injured in the December 31 disaster.
“The search has wrapped up,” said West Java police chief Agung Budi
Maryoto.
“Just one victim has not yet been found and the family has accepted it.”
Landslides are common in Indonesia, a vast tropical archipelago prone to
natural disasters and torrential downpours.
More than 20 people died in October when flash floods and landslides hit
several provinces on Sumatra island, western Indonesia.
In June 2016, nearly 50 people died when floods and landslides struck
Central Java province.
BSS/AFP/MSY/1102 hrs