Death toll in C. Java landslide reaches forty-five

By Israr Ardiansyah

PURWOREJO, Central Java (JP): The death toll from the landslide which struck three districts in the regency of Purworejo reached 45 on Monday, while seven people were reported missing, latest records at a joint emergency post indicated.

Rescue workers assumed that the seven missing people had been swept away by floodwater from the Ngasinan river.

According to records, 18 victims were residents of the Bagelen district, 20 were Purworejo residents and seven were from the Kaligesing district.

The landslide and flood, which followed torrential rains on Saturday, ravaged 13 villages in the 13 districts, devastating a large number of buildings, including residential houses.

The most severely hit area was the Kemanukan village in the district of Bagelen. The village was almost totally covered with mud after a 70-meter high hill with a length of 200 meters collapsed.

The road leading to the village was totally destroyed. "The seven missing people were all Kemanukan villagers," a local said.

As many as 18 spots in the road connecting Kulon Progo with Purworejo via Kaligesing were blocked with mud, forcing motorists to take an alternative route, which was another 40 kilometers long.

Purworejo is about 65 kilometers southwest of Yogyakarta.

Kuswadi, a 33-year-old resident of the village of Cangkep in the Purworejo regency said that it was a tragic calamity. "It is much worse than the November 9, 1990 landslide which killed less than 10 people."

At the joint emergency post, a Kaligono villager, Jati, solemnly read the list of known victims, adding that he was unsure if his relatives or friends were among those killed.

"Two of my neighbors were killed," he said, referring to a 60- year-old man and his 55-year-old wife.

Floods also affected three districts in Purbalingga and Kebumen. No fatalities were reported in Purbalingga, while Kebumen authorities have said two people were killed during the flood.

The President

During his visit to Central Java on Monday, President Abdurrahman Wahid stopped by in Purworejo to visit the affected areas and attempted to console residents in an impromptu dialog.

However, the President and his entourage could only visit the Bagelen district, where he met only 30 people from the villages of Semagung and Kemanukan.

The chief of the neighborhood security force of the Bagelen district, Budi Suharjo, said he found it difficult to contact the villagers to inform them of the President's visit as most of the roads were blocked by soil and mud. "It was an impromptu visit. I found it hard to gather many people to meet the President."

The President offered his deepest condolences to the bereaved families and promised aid to the villagers.

He said he was not yet able to specify exactly what aid he could offer. "It is an unplanned visit. I just stopped by here after hearing that landslides and floods have hit Purworejo."

But the President gave some cash to the tune of Rp 5 million before leaving.

Purworejo regent Marsaid said in his report to the President that his office had donated a total of Rp 50 million to the residents.

The Red Cross office in Purworejo has reportedly provided a total of Rp 2.65 million in burial funds to the victims' relatives.

Authorities have yet to make an estimation of the financial losses caused by the landslide and flood which also destroyed crops and killed a large number of cattle and other animals belonging to the locals.

Meanwhile, Antara reported from Jakarta that the Social Affairs Office in Purworejo, in cooperation with the former Social Affairs Office in the Central Java province, had distributed food and medication to the victims in Purworejo.

The head of the National Social Welfare Agency (BKSN) Anak Agung Gde Agung said that BKSN had yet to give any aid to the Purworejo people because the Social Affairs Office was arranging everything regarding aid.

Anak Agung said he hoped that the distribution of food, clothes and medicine to the victims could be properly carried out.

According to BKSN's record, Anak Agung said, each province had a total of between 500 and 1,000 tons in rice stocked in anticipation of emergencies, such as natural disasters.