Landslide overwhelms district in central Indonesia, at least 15 dead

(ANSA) – JAKARTA, APRIL 14 – At least 15 people have died in the province of South Sulawesi, in central Indonesia, following heavy rains. This was announced by the National Agency for Disaster Management. “A total of 15 people died and two others were injured after being buried by a landslide in Tana Toraja district of South Sulawesi province,” the local disaster management agency said. The landslide occurred yesterday evening. “According to what residents reported, two people are still missing, presumably buried under the debris of the landslide,” said the head of the local disaster agency, Sulaiman Maila. Tana Toraja and surrounding areas were hit by heavy rains last week, he added. Indonesia is prone to landslides during the rainy season and the problem has been exacerbated in some places by deforestation, with prolonged torrential rains causing flooding in some areas of the archipelago nation. (HANDLE).