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Natuna landslide death toll rises to 50
The landslide struck the island of Serasan on March 6, killing scores of residents in a village and burying houses under mud and debris.
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Mud from a recent landslide covers buildings in Sarasan, Natuna, Riau Islands, on March 7, 2023. Fifteen people have died, 42 are missing and more than 1,200 have been relocated to temporary shelters in the wake of the disaster. (Antara/Kiky Firdaus)
T
he death toll from a landslide on a remote island in Natuna rose to 50 with four people still missing on the last day of the search, an official said Wednesday.
The landslide struck the island of Serasan on March 6, killing scores of residents in a village and burying houses under mud and debris.
"Until yesterday 50 people have been found dead, 49 of them have been identified while four others are still missing," local government spokesperson Patli Muhamad told AFP.
At least eight of the dead were children, according to local search and rescue teams scouring the island, located in the Natuna region between Kalimantan and Peninsular Malaysia.
Nearly 3,000 residents remain displaced and were being evacuated to several shelters, according to local authorities.
"They are afraid to go home because there are total blackouts in some villages," Muhamad said.
Officials are planning to meet later on Wednesday to determine whether to extend the search and rescue operation.
