4 People Still Lost Buried In Landslides In Luwu, South Sulawesi

JAKARTA - The search period for the bodies of the victims buried by landslide material in Luwu Regency, South Sulawesi is set to take place effectively until March 3, 2024.

The Head of the Luwu Regency Regional Disaster Management Agency (BPBD) Budi Baso Tenriesa revealed this in an online broadcast entitled Disaster Teropong National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB).

According to Baso, the total to date the local government has deployed four units of heavy equipment, in the form of two excavators and two bulldozers to maximize search operations.

Additional personnel from BPBD, Basarnas, Tagana and TNI-Polri Palopo City were also deployed to the location of the landslide incident in Bonglo Village, North Bastem.

His party ensured that each joint team of officers personnel was equipped with supporting equipment for the search for victims, such as the thermal drones and other body heat detectors belonging to Basarnas.

Seeing the condition of the landslide pile which has a depth of more than 100 meters and its area spreads up to 100 meters, he said, the existence of reinforcements is very much needed to support the acceleration of the search for victims.

Based on reports received by the BPBD team, there were still four of the five victims who were declared missing buried by landslide material since Monday (26/2).

One of the five victims was found Tuesday, (27/2), namely a man named Ratan (50), a resident of Danampan Village, North Bastem, whose body had been handed over by officers to his family.

"The number of victims could be more than that, but what is clear is that we are continuing to try to find all the bodies of the buried victims, including the vehicles belonging to the victims at this set time," he said.