By DPA,
Jakarta : Dozens of people were feared killed by a mudslide triggered by a heavy downpour at a residential hillside area on Indonesia’s West Java province, local media reports said Tuesday.
MetroTV reported that at least 20 people were killed in the incident Tuesday afternoon when a hill collapsed in the tea plantation region of Pasirjambu village in Ciwedey regency.
A local police official told Kompas.com online news that as many as 2,000 people were living in the estate area, including family members of the tea pickers.
The official, identified only as Asep, was quoted as saying that communication with the area was difficult.
“But we have alerted a nearby police office to help the evacuation of the victims,” he was quoted as saying, adding that the mudslides buried a factory, a sports hall and other public facilities.
“It is estimated that many lives were lost,” he said.
Landslides are frequent in Indonesia, where years of deforestation has left hillsides vulnerable to collapse in tropical downpours.