Landslide causes 12 deaths in Indonesia’s Sulawesi Island gold mine

The Indonesian National Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas) announced, Monday, the death of 12 people, and 18 missing after torrential rains caused a landslide in an unauthorized gold mine in Sulawesi Island over the weekend. In a statement, Basarnas head Heriyanto said that the landslide occurred on Sunday in Gorontalo province, killing the miners and inhabitants living close to the illegal mine, however, the team was able to rescue five survivors. Heriyanto stated that Basarnas deployed 164 rescue team members including personnel from the police and army in the search and rescue efforts, underscoring the challenging site of the landslide covered in mud and continuous rainfall. Meanwhile, the Indonesian National Agency for Disaster Countermeasure stated that the landslide damaged numerous homes and a bridge, warning residents of expected rain in the area on Monday and Tuesday, and urging the residents to practice caution. Last April witnessed heavy rains in Sulawesi Island causing a landslide and at leas t 18 deaths, while heavy rains in Sumatra Island caused the deaths of more than 50 people last May. Source: Kuwait News Agency