Landslide kills 10 on Indonesia’s Sulawesi island, 40 missing

JAKARTA - At least 10 people have died and 40 are missing after torrential rain caused a landslide in a gold mine in Indonesia’s Sulawesi island at the weekend, officials said on July 8, with bad weather hampering the rescue effort.

The landslide on the morning of July 7 in Suwawa district, Gorontalo province, killed miners and residents living nearby, said Mr Heriyanto, head of the local rescue agency Basarnas. 

Small-scale and illegal mining is a flash point for conflicts and accidents in Indonesia, where mineral resources are often situated in remote and protected forest areas that are difficult for the government to regulate.

“We have deployed 164 personnel, consisting of the national rescue team, police and military personnel, to search for the missing people,” Mr Heriyanto said.

Earlier on July 8, the agency said at least 12 people had died and 18 were missing, a toll which was updated later in the day to 10 deaths and 40 missing.

By July 8 evening, rescuers had halted their search due to heavy rain, said Indonesia’s disaster mitigation agency.

Rescuers had to walk about 20km to reach the landslide site, and were being hampered by thick mud over the road and continuing rain in the area, Mr Heriyanto said.

“We will try to use an excavator once it’s possible,” he said.

Photos of the affected village shared by the agency showed several houses flattened by the landslide. Indonesia’s disaster management agency BNPB said the landslide damaged some houses and a bridge. It warned residents that rain is still expected in some areas in Gorontalo province on July 8 and 9, urging people to be alert in case of further disaster.

A landslide in South Sulawesi caused by high-intensity rain

killed at least 18 people

in the province in April.

In May, torrential rain that triggered flash floods and mudslides killed more than 50 people in West Sumatra province. REUTERS