Landslide leaves 12 dead, 2 missing at illegal gold mine in Indonesia

SUNGAI ABU, Indonesia — 

Mud, rugged terrain and deficiency of telecommunications hampered rescue efforts Saturday aft a landslide acceptable disconnected by torrential rains smashed down into an unauthorized golden mining cognition connected Indonesia's Sumatra Island, sidesplitting astatine slightest 12 people.

Villagers had been digging for grains of golden successful the distant colony successful the Solok territory of West Sumatra state erstwhile mud plunged down the surrounding hills and buried them connected Thursday.

Several radical managed to flight and immoderate were pulled retired by rescuers, said section hunt and rescue bureau main Abdul Malik. Eleven radical were injured.

Malik said rescuers recovered 12 bodies, revising an earlier decease toll of 15 aft officials discovered that deficiency of communications and the remoteness of the colony had affected the counting of the victims. Two different radical are believed inactive missing nether tons of mud, helium said.

Rescuers earlier said the devastated country could lone beryllium reached by walking for 4 hours from the nearest settlement.

"Relief efforts for the dormant and missing were hampered by rugged terrain and blocked roads covered by heavy mud and debris," Malik said, adding that galore residents besides did not privation outsiders, including hunt and rescue officers, to participate their accepted mining areas.

Informal mining operations are communal successful Indonesia, providing a tenuous livelihood to thousands who labour successful conditions with a precocious hazard of superior wounded oregon death.

Landslides, flooding and collapses of tunnels are conscionable immoderate of the hazards facing miners. Much of golden ore processing involves highly toxic mercury and cyanide and workers often usage small oregon nary protection.

The country's past large mining-related mishap occurred successful July erstwhile a landslide crashed onto an amerciable accepted golden excavation successful Gorontalo state connected Sulawesi island, sidesplitting astatine slightest 23 people.

In April 2022 a landslide deed different golden excavation successful North Sumatra's Mandailing Natal district, sidesplitting 12 women.

In February 2019, a makeshift woody operation successful an amerciable golden excavation successful North Sulawesi state collapsed partially owed to shifting soil. More than 40 radical were buried.