JAKARTA, Jan 29 — Three more bodies were recovered today, bringing the death toll from the West Bandung landslide in West Java to 56, as search and rescue (SAR) operations continued.
The National Agency for Disaster Management's (BNPB) disaster data, information, and communication head Abdul Muhari said all the remains had been handed over to the Disaster Victim Identification (DVI) team for the identification process.
“Based on the DVI team’s findings as of Wednesday at 10pm local time, 40 landslide victims in West Bandung have been identified.
“The identified bodies have been handed over to the victims’ families. An estimated 24 people are still missing,” he said in a statement today.
The landslide triggered by high-intensity rainfall struck Pasirlangu village at around 2.30am on Saturday, burying several residential areas.
Abdul added that the SAR operations, now in their sixth day, involved 3,229 personnel.
“Heavy equipment and search dogs continue to be deployed to speed up search and rescue efforts. At least 15 excavators have been mobilised to accelerate the operation,” he said.
