Padang City Road Access To Solok Closed By Landslide

PADANG - The access road connecting Padang City with Solok Regency, West Sumatra was blocked by landslides.

The Head of the Lubuk Kilangan Police, Kompol Lija Nesmo, said that his party had just received the information from the public and immediately dispatched personnel to the location.

"Our personnel just rolled out to the location. The location is still in an area that previously collapsed some time ago," he said as quoted by ANTARA, Monday, July 25. He also coordinated with the Padang Local Disaster Management Agency (BPBD) regarding landslides on the main route connecting Padang with Solok Regency.

According to Commissioner Lija, the landslide area is a vulnerable area, plus the high rainfall that has occurred since the morning.

"The material was cleaned yesterday, because the heavy rain caused the material above to fall onto the road," he said.

Meanwhile, the acting head of the Padang City BPBD, Arfian, said that he had sent personnel to the field to review the condition.

He only found out about this information from a photo that depicted a landslide and a Pertamina tanker that was affected by the landslide.

His party also coordinated with the Provincial BPBD asking for the Minister For Public Works and Human Settlements (PUPR) Service's assistance to evacuate the landslide material that blocked the road.

Currently, heavy equipment has been working to clear the landslide material at the location and traffic flow from the two areas is temporarily closed until the evacuation is complete.

He appealed to the public to be careful and vigilant when outside the house during high rainfall accompanied by strong winds.

"Especially in areas prone to landslides or in areas with lots of trees and large billboards," he said.