JP/5/LONGSOR

Riau-Sumatra highway cut by landslide

Puji Santoso, The Jakarta Post/Pekanbaru

The main highway between the provinces of Riau and West Sumatra was cut on Friday by a landslide triggered by torrential rains in Kampar regency over the past week.

Mud and rocks covered about 30 meters of the highway, while heavy rains aggravated the situation.

Hundreds of vehicles traveling to and from West Sumatra were left stranded and a massive traffic jam formed along the highway.

The line of cars reached seven kilometers as of Saturday afternoon. The Kampar Police had trouble rerouting the traffic due to the continuing rain.

Kampar Police chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Abdul Hakim Gani confirmed the situation by telephone.

Gani said the area was prone to landslides during heavy rains in the Rantau Beringin area of Kampar. There were no fatalities reported in the landslide and no private property was damaged.

"To avoid any fatalities, we will temporarily evacuate residents living near the landslide location," said Gani.

Musa, a resident of Rantau Berangin village, said landslides frequently occurred in the area, which he believed was due to nearby logging activities.

Heavy equipment such as excavators have been dispatched to the area by the Kampar Public Works Office to clear away the debris on the highway.

Cars trapped on the highway since Saturday are continuing to inch their way along the treacherous road.

The situation has, however, benefited residents selling food and drinks to bus drivers and passengers trapped in the traffic.

Residents are taking full advantage of the captive customers, selling bottles of water normally priced at Rp 2,000 for between Rp 5,000 and Rp 7,500.

"When can we make this kind of profit again?" asked Syahrul, 24, a Rantau Berangin resident.