(Jakarta) At least 30 people were killed in a landslide on the Indonesian island of Serasan on Monday, according to a new count after new bodies were discovered on Thursday, an official said.
Patli Muhamad, a local government spokesperson, told AFP that nine bodies were found under rubble in the village of Pangkalan, adding that 24 people are still missing.
The landslide hit the island of Serasan, one of the most isolated in Indonesia, located in the Natuna region between Borneo and Malaysia on Monday.
Muhamad said bad weather conditions initially slowed down search and rescue operations but have since improved and lines of communication are gradually being restored.
Landslides are common during the rainy season in Indonesia, where the situation is sometimes aggravated by deforestation and sustained heavy rains that have caused flooding in several regions.
Experts say climate change is making these disasters worse.
The head of the National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB), Suharyanto, who only responds to one name, said the regional government of Natuna had agreed to relocate dozens of families away from the affected areas, in order to reduce risk in future disasters.
In the Banja region, located in the Indonesian part of the island of Borneo, the waters flooded more than 17,000 homes and disrupted local life for a month.
Neighboring Malaysia was also the victim of massive flooding which led to the evacuation of nearly 41,000 people in several states of the country.