Landslide Hits the Trenggalek-Ponorogo Road, Access Completely Blocked

A landslide struck the Trenggalek-Ponorogo National Road in East Java on Tuesday evening, 3 March, around 5:30 pm WIB, causing a total closure of the route linking the two districts. The debris, consisting of large rocks, blocked the entire carriageway on the National Road at KM 16, Nglinggis Village, Tugu District, Trenggalek Regency. ‘There has been a landslide with large rock material blocking the Trenggalek-Ponorogo National Road KM 16, Nglinggis Village, Tugu District,’ said Satriyo Nurseno, Head of Emergency and Logistics at BPBD East Java, last night. With such large material, vehicles with two or four wheels cannot pass. ‘The road is impassable; motorists are advised to use alternative routes,’ he added. Field officers are on site at Dusun Pacar RT 09/RW 03, continuing to secure the area. Although the landslide has completely blocked the road, BPBD confirmed there are no casualties. The priority now is to secure the area and prevent entry to the hazard zone. BPBD Trenggalek has coordinated with BBPJN East Java-Bali to arrange the evacuation of the material. Satriyo noted that given the size of the rocks, clearing cannot be done manually and requires heavy equipment. ‘Clearing the landslide material will be carried out using heavy equipment, with the equipment expected to arrive by 00:00 WIB,’ he said. While awaiting the heavy machinery, joint BPBD and village personnel remain on standby to conduct assessment and monitoring. Motorists travelling to Ponorogo from Trenggalek or vice versa are urged to take alternative routes to avoid long congestion around the incident.