SAR TEAM CONTINUES SEARCH FOR 80 MISSING IN WEST BANDUNG LANDSLIDE

JAKARTA, Jan 25 (Bernama) -- The Indonesian search and rescue (SAR) team intensified efforts on Sunday to locate 80 people reported missing following a landslide that struck Pasir Langu village in West Bandung, West Java, on Saturday.

National Agency for Disaster Management (BNPB)’s Disaster Data, Information, and Communication Head Abdul Muhari said the exact number of missing people, remains unconfirmed.

As of 7pm Saturday, he said the disaster has claimed nine lives, five of whom have been identified and handed over to their families for burial.

“The remaining four are still undergoing identification. The SAR team also found two body parts, which are still in the process of identification,“ he said in a statement, on Sunday.

The Malaysian Foreign Ministry on Sunday confirmed that no Malaysian citizens were reported to be affected by the landslide, affirming that it would continue to monitor developments closely.

The landslide, triggered by high-intensity rainfall occurred at around 2.30am, Saturday, struck several residential areas and burying more than 30 houses. 

“As a precaution against possible afterslides, 230 residents living near the affected area have been evacuated to safer locations,” he said.

In other developments, Abdul Muhari said floods in Subang, West Java, have submerged 3,355 houses in 21 villages since Jan 22, affecting 9,491 residents, including 957 who were evacuated, with floodwaters still not receding as of Saturday.

A similar situation also occurred in Majalengka affecting 318 families, he added.

He also urged the public to be vigilant as moderate to heavy downpour is forecast across Indonesia particularly in Aceh, Bengkulu, Lampung, Jakarta, West Java, Central Java, East Nusa Tenggara, Central Kalimantan, Sulawesi, North Maluku, Central Papua and Papua.

-- BERNAMA