Indonesian rescuers recovered at least 16 bodies that were swept away by flash floods or buried under tons of mud and rocks that hit mountain villages on the country’s main island of Java, officials said Tuesday (Jan. 21, 2025). Nine people were missing.
Torrential rains on Monday (January 20) caused rivers to burst their banks, washing away nine villages in Pekalongan regency of Central Java province, as mud, rocks and trees fell from hillside villages. mountains, said Bergas Catursasi, who heads the local Disaster Management Agency. .
He said rescue workers on Tuesday (Jan 21) pulled out at least 16 bodies in the worst-affected Petungkriyono village, and that rescuers are searching for nine villagers who are reportedly still missing. Ten injured people managed to escape and were rushed to nearby hospitals, Catursari said.
Seasonal rains from October to March frequently cause flooding and landslides in Indonesia, an archipelago of 17,000 islands where millions of people live in mountainous areas or near fertile floodplains.
Published – January 21, 2025 01:39 pm IST
