a disaster official said. Triggered by heavy rainfall, the landslide struck a village in West Bandung Regency at around 2:30 a.m., damaging homes.

“A landslide occurred in West Bandung Regency, West Java Province, in the early hours of Saturday, killing seven people,” said Abdul Muhari, a spokesman for the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB). “As of 10:30 a.m. on Saturday, dozens of residents were reported safe, and 83 people were still being searched for,” he added.

Floods and landslides are common in Indonesia during the rainy season, which typically runs from October to March. Tropical storms and intense monsoon rains battered parts of South and Southeast Asia late last year, triggering deadly floods and landslides from Indonesia’s Sumatra rainforests to highland plantations in Sri Lanka.

Around 1,200 people died in floods in Sumatra, and more than 240,000 were displaced, according to the BNPB. Environmentalists and experts have pointed to deforestation as a key factor exacerbating the flooding and landslides that sent torrents of mud into villages. In response, the government this week revoked more than two dozen permits held by forestry, mining and hydroelectric companies in Sumatra.

The latest landslide follows torrential rains that hit Indonesia’s Siau Island  this month, causing flash floods that killed at least 16 people. (Bssnews)