At least 5 people have died in Indonesian floods, as relief efforts are hampered by muck

[ASEAN NOW Content Team]

 

Officials reported Friday that flash floods caused by torrential rainfall on Indonesia's major island of Java killed at least five people and left four others missing.

Rivers on the slopes of Mount Arjuno spilled their banks on Thursday, flooding five hamlets in Kota Batu, East Java province, according to the National Disaster Mitigation Agency.
It was previously reported that 15 individuals were carried away, with five being rescued later.

Heavy rains are likely to continue and rise through February, according to the agency's chief, Ganip Warsito, partially due to a La Nina weather pattern.

 

The agency provided photos and videos of a broken bridge, as well as residences and cars engulfed in thick mud.

Authorities were still gathering information on the damage and potential casualties, and individuals in impacted areas were being evacuated to government shelters, Muhari added.

 

Severe flooding was also recorded in other parts of the country, but no one was killed, according to the Associated Press.

In Indonesia, a 17,000-island archipelago where millions of people live in mountainous locations or near rich river plains, seasonal rains frequently produce flooding and landslides.