Fifteen perish, tow missing as landslides devastate Central Java
Fifteen perish, tow missing as landslides devastate Central Java
Slamet Susanto, The Jakarta Post, Yogyakarta
At least 15 were killed as landslides and floods triggered by
days of rain swept through three villages in Purworejo regency,
Central Java, residents said on Friday.
The dead included 13 victims from one family who were buried
in a landslide in Plipir village and another one in Keseneng
village, while the remaining victim drowned in a flood that hit
Bagelang village.
Witnesses said the landslides hit on Thursday night while
residents were sleeping.
At least 11 bodies have been pulled out from the rubble and
two other victims -- Paiman and Sagiman -- are still missing.
Rescue teams were not optimistic about finding survivors.
Difficult conditions in the affected area hampered efforts to
find the missing two. Many fallen trees increased the
difficulties faced by rescuers.
Rescuers were unable to bring in heavy equipment due to a lack
of access to the scene, and they had to dig to a depth of between
three and five meters to find survivors.
Eyewitness Ahmad Gunadi, who lives around 25 meters from the
location of the landslide in Plipir, said the disaster followed
two days of rain since Wednesday.
"Amid the heavy rain, I suddenly heard a loud rumble like the
sound of a helicopter flying low. By the time I got out of my
house, four of my neighbors' houses were already buried up to
five meters deep," Ahmad said.
The houses, located around 100 meters from a hillside,
belonged to a single family with 13 members, he added.
Only one member of the family, identified as Tito Riwayatono,
29, survived the disaster as he was not at home but attending a
routine religious gathering on Thursday night.
"At the time I did not know at all if my family was affected
by the disaster. But when I came home at 9 p.m., I could no
longer see my house or find my family members," Tito said crying.
When he discovered that his house had been flattened by the
landslide, Tito immediately shouted for help along with his
neighbor Ahmad Gunadi.
The two ran to the nearby mosque and grabbed a microphone
asking for help from other residents.
The 13 dead family members included Sukardi, 65, and his wife
Sarinah, 60; Tukino, 39, his wife Ruskayaiti, 32, and their two
children Edi Rahmatdani, 11, and Ahmat Fifai, 3; Paiman, 24, his
wife Mursidah, 24, who was nine-months pregnant, and their
daughter Nina Aryanti, 6.
Tito's wife Siti Lestarini, 25, and their two children
Fauziyah Verawati and Ibnu Saefudin, 6. were also killed along
with Sukardi's son-in-law, Sagiman, who was staying overnight
with them.
Another victim, identified as Istighomah, 47, was buried by a
landslide that hit Keseneng village in Purworejo subdistrict.
Meanwhile, Setro Semito, a 70-year-old resident from Bagelan
village in the same subdistrict was swept away by a flood
following heavy rain in the southern part of Central Java and
Yogyakarta.
Bagelan village chief Sukiswanto said landslides had hit three
areas but could not give any details as yet.
Landslides are common in Indonesia due to rampant illegal
logging and heavy rainfall during the rainy season, which will
continue until March.
A landslide that swept through a small village in West Java
earlier this month killed a mother and her three young children.
In November 2002, mud slides ripped through a hot spring
resort in Pacet subdistrict, Mojokerto regency, East Java,
killing at least 26 people.
One year later, more than 200 people were killed when a flash
flood devastated the Bukit Lawang resort in Bahorok, North
Sumatra.