Landslides in Indonesia's Sumatra kill at least 27

KIKI CAHYADI/ AFP

Indonesian rescuers are searching for passengers trapped in a minibus buried in mud after flash floods and landslides hit several locations in North Sumatra province, killing at least 27, an official said on Thursday.

Torrential rain in the province since last week had caused flash floods and landslides in four different districts, Indonesia's disaster agency has said.

A landslide in a village in Deli Serdang on Wednesday killed seven and injured 20, Hadi Wahyudi, North Sumatra police spokesperson told Reuters.

Rescuers were looking for missing people, including those trapped in a minibus and other vehicles on a hilly interprovince road hit by a mudslide, he said, adding he could not give an estimate for the number of affected people.

In other places, rescuers have found 20 dead during a search that started over the weekend. They are still searching for two missing.

"Today, we're focusing our search to find missing people and clearing the roads affected by the landslides," said Hadi, adding excavators were deployed.

The landslides and flash floods damaged houses, mosques, and rice fields.

Heavy rains also triggered floods in the provincial capital of Medan, forcing a delay in votes for a regional election in some polling stations.

Extreme weather is expected in Indonesia towards the end of 2024, as the La Nina phenomenon increases rainfalls across the tropical archipelago, the country's weather agency has warned.

More from International

  • Trump, Putin to meet in Alaska for Ukraine talks

    US President Donald Trump will meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin on August 15 in Alaska to negotiate an end to the war in Ukraine, Trump said on Friday.

  • At least six troops killed in southern Lebanon explosion

    The Lebanese army said on Saturday that six soldiers were killed and others wounded in an explosion while they were inspecting a weapons depot and dismantling its contents in the southern city of Tyre.

  • Bus collision with truck kills 11, injures 45 in Brazil

    A crash between a bus and a truck in Brazil's center-western state of Mato Grosso killed 11 people and injured another 45 late Friday, the toll road operator and Brazil's federal highway police said on Saturday.

  • UK, US host meeting on Ukraine

    British foreign minister David Lammy and US Vice President JD Vance are meeting Ukrainian and European allies in Britain on Saturday to discuss President Donald Trump's push for peace in Ukraine, a spokesperson for Downing Street said.

  • 120 Al-Shabaab militants killed in Somalia

    Somali Minister of Defence Ahmed Moalim Fiqi confirmed that 120 Al-Shabaab militants were killed during an offensive in Bariire, with several others captured alive.