The death toll from the flood disaster that struck in Garut Regency, West Java, has now risen to 33.
Indonesia’s National Disaster Management Authority (BNPB) said yesterday that a search and rescue (SAR) team is continuing operations in the hope of finding 20 people who are still missing.
The Cimanuk and Cikamuri rivers overflowed in the early hours of 21 September, leaving the villages of Bayongbong, Tarogong Kidul, Tarogong Kaler, Banyuresmi, Karangpawitan under floodwater up to 2 metres deep in some areas.
Cars were overturned, buildings destroyed and streets left strewn with mud and flood debris.
BNPD said that the SAR team had to search under collapsed buildings and thick mud. They have extended their area of search as far as Sumendang.
The search team includes police sniffer dogs and also 5 heavy vehicles. However, not all affected areas can be accessed by heavy vehicles, and search personnel have been manually digging out some affected areas.
As of Sunday, 25 September, official reports said that 33 people had died, 20 were missing, 35 injured and 6,361 displaced. Preliminary assessments recorded 2,049 houses damaged with as many as 283 houses destroyed and 605 houses severely damaged.
Repairs to broken dams and embankments are being carried out by the Ministry of Public Works and Housing.
The Ministry of Social Welfare is providing food and other essential items to those displaced, and the Red Cross is providing medical assistance.
1 Dead After Landslide in Central Java
Yet another deadly landslide has been reported in Indonesia, this time in Banjarnegara Regency in the south west part of Central Java province.
The landslide was triggered by heavy rain on Saturday 24 September. A house was completely buried, leaving one man dead and 9 others affected.
