"It is believed that 26 people are still buried in the landslide," BNPB spokesperson Sutopo Purwo Nugroho said.Jakarta (ANTARA News) - One person has been found dead and 26 others still unaccounted for after a landslide hit Ponorogo, East Java, the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) said here on Saturday.
"It is believed that 26 people are still buried in the landslide," BNPB spokesperson Sutopo Purwo Nugroho told newsmen.
He stated that a search-and-rescue team, consisting of military, police, disaster mitigation personnel, health service workers, volunteers, and community members were still struggling to find the victims.
The landslide in Tangkil hamlet in the village of Banaran, Pulung sub-district, occurred at 8am. A stretch of around 800-meter-long earth slid from a height of around 20 meters damaging 23 houses underneath where around 50 people lived.
Sutopo noted that some of the people were rescued, and 17 of them were now being treated in Pulung healthcare center.
Incessant rains have fallen in the area for the past few days, causing cracks on the hilly land. Upon seeing signs of danger, some villagers left at night but returned in the morning.
On Friday night, a heavy rain fell, but no landslide was reported that night, he remarked. (*)
Editor: Heru Purwanto
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