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Landslide in Cianjur claims seven lives; three missing
Seven bodies were recovered Friday while three people were reported still missing after a landslide hit a village in Cianjur
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Seven bodies were recovered Friday while three people were reported still missing after a landslide hit a village in Cianjur.
The incident took place Thursday 4:30 p.m. local time at Leuwinanggung hamlet, Sukamekar
village, Sukanagara district, Cianjur regency.
“The search and rescue team saved another five, four seriously injured and one lightly injured” said Prayogi, the spokesperson of the Cianjur administration office, when contacted on Friday afternoon.
“The survivors have been brought to a hospital.”
Prayogi said the landslide had followed a downpour.
“Seven houses have been buried by landslide. Those houses are around 80 meters below the hill.”
The landslide was reported to have held up traffic for a few hours along the road connecting Cianjur and West Java capital city of Bandung.
Surono, the head of disaster mitigation center, said his office had given a disaster mapping to several administration offices in West Java over landslide hot spots and recommended against dwelling on the mentioned hot spots.
“Because development should incorporate assessment on people’s safety apart from the economic aspect,” Surono said.
Surono said Cianjur was one of the regencies prone to landslides.
“Cianjur and Garut lie on a zone prone to the plate shift of land layer.”
Surono recommended the government evacuate people from those areas categorized as prone to landslides.
He said the government should learn from the deadly landslide in Ciwidey, Bandung, last month.
The landslide at a tea plantation at Tenjolaya village killed 33 people with another 11 missing.
“The Tenjolaya incident should make us aware about the threat. The incident in Cianjur has added to the woes in West Java,” Surono said.
Prayogi rejected suggestions that governmental lapse contributed to the disaster, saying they had been advising the people to abandon the landslide-prone areas. “But the people did not appear to heed the advice.”
The incident took place Thursday 4:30 p.m. local time at Leuwinanggung hamlet, Sukamekar
village, Sukanagara district.
