Flash floods and landslides kill 16 people on Indonesia’s Sumatra island
Al Jazeera
Rescue workers use excavators and bare hands to find disaster victims in Karo district, one of three affected.
At least 16 people have been killed on Sumatra when flash floods and a landslide struck the Indonesian island.
The military and rescue officials have been deployed to four affected areas. Six people are still missing, officials said on Monday.
Mud, rocks and trees tumbled down a mountain after torrential rains over the weekend, and rivers burst their banks, tearing through four hilly districts in North Sumatra province, washing away houses and destroying farms.
Police, soldiers and rescue workers used excavators, farm equipment and their bare hands to sift through the rubble, looking for the dead and missing in Semangat Gunung, a resort area in Karo district, said Juspri M Nadeak, who heads the local disaster management agency.
Rescuers recovered six bodies after a landslide hit two houses and a cottage late on Sunday, he said. Nine injured people managed to escape, he said. Rescuers on Monday were still searching for four missing people, including two children.
