Two Dead, 27 Missing In Banjarnegara Landslide, Central Java

By Mohd Iswandi Kasan Anuar

JAKARTA, Nov 17 (Bernama) -- At least two people were killed and two others were injured after a landslide struck Pandanarum village in Pandanarum district, Banjarnegara regency in Central Java on Saturday, officials said.

The Banjarnegara Regency Regional Disaster Management Agency (BPBD) reported that 27 people remain trapped under debris, while 823 residents have been displaced, in the incident which occurred at about 4 pm local time, following heavy rainfall.

“Intense rain and unstable soil probably triggered the collapse, which damaged rice fields, plantations and 30 homes,” BNPB (Indonesian National Board for Disaster Management) spokesperson Abdul Muhari said in a statement on Monday.

It is the second landslide in Central Java in recent days, following a similar disaster in Cilacap regency on Nov 13, which killed 16 people and left seven missing amid ongoing search efforts.

-- BERNAMA