Indonesian rescue teams recovered 10 bodies after devastating flash floods hit hilly villages on Java, the country’s main island. Two people reportedly are still missing amid continuing searches.
Torrential rains have poured since last week, breaching rivers and affecting over 170 villages in Sukabumi district of West Java. Lieutenant Colonel Yudi Hariyanto, who is heading the rescue operations in Sukabumi, told news agencies that mud, rocks, and trees have gushed down from the mountains to damage local communities.
It has brought about numerous landslides, flash flooding, and strong winds and has affected a total of 172 villages, where more than 3,000 residents have moved into temporary shelters. Authorities have called on nearly 1,000 more to evacuate due to the threat it posed to more than 400 homes.
The disasters have destroyed 31 bridges, 81 roads, and 539 hectares of rice fields – or about 1,332 acres – while 1,170 houses have been submerged up to their roofs. More than 3,300 other structures have also been damaged, according to the local disaster management agency.
On Monday, rescue workers retrieved 10 bodies from the hardest-hit areas, including Tegalbuleud, Simpenan, and Ciemas, among them three children. Search efforts for the missing villagers are ongoing.
Videos published to social media demonstrated the sheer force of the floods that swept away vehicles, livestock, and debris to turn the roads into murky rivers. Videos from the West Java Search and Rescue Agency show the extent of the damage, where soldiers and rescue workers toil in trying to extricate mud-caked bodies from ruins.
With Indonesia preparing for more extreme weather, the state meteorologists have pinpointed three tropical cyclone systems that may bring more heavy rainfall in different parts of the country. The extreme weather is expected to hit both western and eastern parts of the archipelago in the coming days.
This comes after last month’s flash floods and landslides in North Sumatra province killed at least 29 people and delayed regional elections in some areas.
