Three killed in landslide in two Lampung villages

Oyos Saroso H.N., The Jakarta Post, Bandarlampung

Following heavy rains, a landslide swept through the villages of Gunung Megang and Tekad in Pulau Panggung district, Tanggamus regency, Lampung, late on Friday, killing three people.

The bodies of the victims, identified as A. Rifai, Mairin and Mujiono, have been recovered.

The daughter of Mujiono, Indah Sari, 15, said a 150-meter tall hill behind her house collapsed, burying the house and killing her father and the other two victims.

Indah escaped the incident with just minor injuries.

The two villages are located in remote areas of Lampung province, so news of the incident was slow to reach officials and rescue workers.

Tanggamus Regent Fauzan Sya'i said on Saturday he would immediately dispatch help to the villages, and voiced concern of further landslides.

He warned Tanggamus residents, especially those living along the coast in Kotaagung to remain alert for possible storms in the area.

On March 13 and March 14, storms and big waves hit the coast in Kotaagung. No causalities were reported but five fishing boats were destroyed.

The head of Kotaagung district, M. Shobir Thoyib, and Kotaagung Police chief First Insp. Suwaryo said they would continue to monitor the situation along the coast.

"We will not evacuate residents because the storms are not that strong. If the storm and the waves reach the Dermaga III dock we will begin to evacuate residents, especially those living along the coast," he said.

Strong winds have been reported several times over the last month in parts of Lampung. Last week, hundreds of houses in Lampung Timur were damaged by fierce winds. Although no casualties have been reported, the winds have caused material losses.

In Kotaagung, many fishermen are reluctant to go to sea since the storm last week. Some families who fled their homes because of the storm have now returned.

The head of Lampung's meteorology and geophysics office, Bambang Setyanto, warned of possible storms in the coming days.

"Fishermen and residents should be careful because strong winds of 30 knots, or 54 kilometers per hour, are destructive in nature," Bambang said.

He said satellite images showed a great deal of cloud coverage in the area.