Syofiardi Bachyul Jb, The Jakarta Post, Padang
Eleven more bodies buried in a landslide in Solok regency, West Sumatra, were found by a search and rescue team Saturday.
A total of eighteen people were killed in the landslide in Jorong Koto Baru village in Lembah Gumanti regency. All of the bodies have now been recovered, with the regency administration deploying heavy equipment Saturday to aid in the search.
The final body found was that of 60-year-old Muslim. He wife and two children also died in the disaster.
Authorities earlier said the landslide had killed 19, but it later emerged that one of the victims, 12-year-old Sigal, had not been at home at the time of the landslide and had survived.
All the bodies have been identified and will be buried late Saturday at Parak Pakis hill, a kilometer away from the disaster site.
The landslide hit the village following two days of heavy rain, with Solok Regent Gusmal saying it had cost Rp 7 billion in financial losses.
"Solok regency administration will provide insurance to each of the victims through their heirs at Rp 2 million (US$217) each," he said.
He said that 10 damaged houses would be replaced while 60 families living near the site would be moved to a safer area in the same district.
Hasna, 40, said she had lost her two brothers, Nedik, 25, and Marin, 18, in the disaster. The two men were asleep in the mosque when the landslide hit the village.
Nine victims, mostly boys, were buried in Nurul Huda mosque, where they had attended a lecture and were now sleeping, by the landslide.
"I was sleeping with my husband and two children but I woke up at around 3 a.m. because of a thundering sound, which was then followed by people screaming. I woke my husband and children up and we fled to safety," said Hasna.
Armita Mz, 30, said his 15-year-old brother Amek had been killed along with eight of his friends.
"They had been sleeping for just an hour when the landslide hit them at three in the morning," he said.
Health Minister Siti Fadilah Supari said in Lumajang, East Java, on Sunday that the central government had sent 50 body bags to Solok.
She added that the local government had not yet requested any extra assistance.
Rain also triggered a landslide in South Solok regency Thursday, killing six men working in a traditional gold mine.
South Solok Police chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Arsenius Purba said Saturday the landslide had taken place at 11 a.m. in Gasian Lubuk Ulangaling in Sangir Batanghari district.
"The six victims continued to mine despite the heavy rain, and suddenly the landslide buried them," he said, adding that the bodies had been recovered and buried.
-- Wahyoe Boediwardhana contributed to the story from Malang, East Java.