Landslides At Cirebon Mine: 21 Dead, Search Continued

JAKARTA The number of victims who died from landslides at the excavation C mine in the Gunung Kuda area, Cirebon, as of Monday, May 2 evening was recorded at 21 people. The last victim found was Puji Siswanto (50), a resident of Leuwimunding Village, Majalengka Regency.

Chronology began on Saturday afternoon, June 1, 2024, when a number of workers were active in sand and stone mining sites. At around 13.30 WIB, suddenly there was a large landslide from a tens of meters high cliff, which immediately piled up workers and heavy equipment in the mining area.

The weather was reported to be cloudy, with unstable soil conditions after rainy in the previous few days.

The search for victims was carried out manually by residents and local workers, before the joint SAR team was finally deployed to the location.

"The search operation was hampered by thick avalanche material and steep terrain," said Head of the BNPB Disaster Data, Information and Communication Center, Abdul Muhari, Tuesday, June 3.

As of Monday afternoon, a total of 21 victims were found dead. The search process had to be temporarily suspended at 16.00 WIB due to the detection of ground movement in the landslide area. The SAR team will continue to search for the four people who are still missing on Tuesday morning.

Mount Kuda itself is a sand hilly area and rock with a steep slope, exceeding 45 degrees. Based on a study of disaster risk, this area is classified as prone to landslides, even without mining activities.

"Bukit with similar characteristics is quite common in West Java," added Abdul.