Indonesia digs out as flooding and landslide kill 20

JAKARTA — Rescue workers in western Indonesia used heavy equipment on Tuesday to dig out victims following weekend flooding and landslides that have killed at least 20 people, the national disaster agency said.

In North Sumatra Province, the bodies of five people listed as missing had been pulled from under a mountain of mud and debris, agency spokesman Abdul Muhari said in a statement.

"All victims have been found dead," he said on Tuesday, adding that 10 people in all had been killed in a Karo district landslide.

Beginning on Saturday, heavy rain pounded four districts across North Sumatra, producing deadly floods and landslides.

Juspri Nadeak, disaster chief in the hardest-hit Karo district, said on Tuesday that the discovery of victims not yet reported missing to authorities remained a possibility. "The landslide area provides access to hot springs, so there's a possibility that tourists were hit by it."

In a village in the Deli Serdang district, where four people have been found dead and two more are missing, piles of mud, logs and rocks were scattered around the village where a rescue operation was underway.

"The electricity was cut off, and there is no cellphone reception, making it difficult for us rescuers to communicate," said Iman Sitorus, a local search and rescue agency spokesman. Authorities have also deployed heavy equipment to clean up the debris, he said.

The rest of the victims were found in South Tapanuli, Padang Lawas and Deli Serdang districts.

Indonesia has suffered a string of recent extreme weather events, which experts say are made more likely by climate change.

In May, at least 67 people died after a mixture of ash, sand and pebbles carried down from the eruption of Mount Marapi in West Sumatra washed into residential areas, causing flash floods.

Agencies via Xinhua