34 killed, 16 missing in Indonesia flash floods
TANAH DATAR: At least 34 people have died and 16 more were missing after flash floods and cold lava flow from a volcano hit western Indonesia, a local disaster official said on Sunday.
The disaster hit two districts in West Sumatra province on Saturday evening after hours of heavy rain caused flooding and sent sweeping ash and large rocks down Mount Marapi, the most active volcano on the archipelago’s Sumatra island.
“Until now our data shows that 34 people died: 16 in Agam and 18 in Tanah Datar. At least 18 others are injured. We are also still searching for 16 other people,” West Sumatra disaster agency spokesman Ilham Wahab told AFP.
He said the search effort involved local rescuers, police, soldiers and volunteers.
Abdul Malik, head of Padang Search and Rescue Agency, told reporters three more people had died but they were yet to be confirmed by other authorities.
Agam and Tanah Datar districts were hit at around 10:30 pm (local time) on Saturday, according to Basarnas search and rescue agency.
Earlier, Basarnas said 12 people had died including several children after the flash floods and cold lava flow.
Cold lava, also known as lahar, is volcanic material like ash, sand and pebbles carried down a volcano’s slopes by rain.
Nine bodies were identified earlier on Sunday, including those of a three-year-old and eight-year-old, Malik said in a statement.
“Today, we will continue the search in the two districts,” he said.
Authorities dispatched a team of rescuers and rubber boats to look for the missing victims and to transport people to shelters.
The local government set up evacuation centres and emergency posts in several areas of the two districts.
About 370,000 people live in Tanah Datar, where several mosques and a public pool were damaged, with large rocks and logs scattered on the ground, according to an AFP journalist at the scene.
Indonesia is prone to landslides and floods during the rainy season.
In March at least 26 people had been found dead after landslides and floods hit West Sumatra.
In December, Marapi erupted and spewed an ash tower 3,000 metres into the sky, taller than the volcano itself.
At least 24 climbers, most of them university students, died in the eruption.
Indonesia bus crash
Meanwhile, a bus slammed into cars and motorbikes after its brakes apparently malfunctioned in Indonesia’s West Java province, killing at least 11 people, mostly students, and injuring dozens of others, officials said on Sunday.
The bus, carrying a total of 61 students and teachers, was on its return journey to a high school located in Depok, situated just outside Jakarta, the capital city of Indonesia. The incident occurred late Saturday following a graduation celebration held in the hilly resort area of Bandung, said West Java police spokesperson Jules Abraham Abast.
As the bus careened down a steep downhill road, it spiraled out of control, veering across lanes and colliding with multiple cars and motorbikes before ultimately slamming into an electricity pole, recounted Abast.
The accident claimed nine lives on the spot, with two others succumbing to their injuries later in the hospital, including a teacher and a local motorist, Abast said. Fifty-three other people were hospitalised with injuries, including some in critical condition, he said.
“We are still investigating the cause of the accident, but a preliminary investigation showed the bus’s brakes malfunctioned,” Abast said.
Local television footage showed the mangled bus in the darkness on its side, surrounded by rescuers, police and passersby as ambulances evacuated the injured.
Road accidents are common in Indonesia due to poor safety standards and infrastructure.
Last year, a tourist bus with an apparently drowsy driver slammed into a billboard on a highway in East Java, killing at least 14 people and injuring 19 others.
In 2021, a tourist bus plunged into a ravine in the West Java hilly resort of Puncak after its brakes apparently malfunctioned, killing at least 27 people and injuring 39 others.