21 Residents Still Missing Due To Cilacap Landslides, SAR Team Accompanied By Moving Land
The joint search and rescue (SAR) team coordinated by the Cilacap SAR Office is struggling to find dozens of residents who were reported missing due to landslides in Cibeunying Village, Cilacap Regency, Central Java. The steep terrain and moving soil are the main challenges.
A landslide hit Cibuyut and Taruhan hamlets, Cibeunying Village, Majenang District, on Thursday (13/11), at around 20.00 WIB. This incident was allegedly the impact of the accumulation of heavy rain that had occurred since the previous few days.
Majenang sub-district head, Aji Pramono, confirmed that the SAR team resumed the search operation this morning, Friday. A total of 28 residents were affected, two were found dead, and five survived.
This morning, the joint SAR team again evacuated and searched. There are still 21 residents who are still being searched," said Aji Pramono in Cilacap, Friday.
The Accumulation Of Rain Makes The Land Unable To Hold The Burden
Aji suspects that this landslide was not purely due to last night's rain, but the cumulative impact of the high rainfall that has occurred since last weekend.
"Yesterday it rained normally. This (longsor) may be the impact of heavy rains that occurred during the previous few days, accumulated, so that the soil was unable to withstand the load," he explained.
Head of the Emergency and Logistics Division of the Regional Disaster Management Agency (BPBD) of Cilacap Regency, Budi Setyawan, said that the two victims who were identified were Julia (20) and Maya (15), residents of Tarukahan Hamlet.
In Dukuh Taruhan, seven victims are still being searched, including Yuni, Nina, Fani, Fatin, Lilis, Danu, and a toddler child of Lilis. Meanwhile in Cibuyut Hamlet, 14 victims, consisting of several families, are also still being sought, including Rastum, Rahma, Aca, Cahyanto, and Dani's family (wife and two children).
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12 Houses Damaged, Land Still Moving
The impact of material damage is also significant. Temporary data collection of BPBD showed landslides damaged 12 houses and threatened 16 other houses in the area.
Budi Setyawan appealed to the public to stay away from vulnerable areas because the soil condition was still unstable.
Residents in the vulnerable zone have been evacuated. The land is still moving at a number of points so we ask residents to stay away from the area and follow the directions of the officers," said Budi.
Head of the Operations and Alert Section of the Cilacap SAR Office, Priyo Prayudha Utama, added that the search process was carried out manually due to tough terrain challenges.
The team immediately conducted an assessment and prepared a movement plan. The search continues even though the terrain is quite challenging," he said.
Data on victims and damage are expected to continue to develop along with the joint team's evacuation efforts.