JAKARTA, Nov. 29 (Xinhua) -- Landslides in Indonesia's North Sumatra province have claimed at least seven lives, with more than seven others reported missing, according to top rescuers and officials.
"We have evacuated seven bodies, and we are still searching for other victims," said Mustari, head of the provincial search and rescue office, on Thursday. He added that over 10 people sustained injuries during the landslides.
The disaster began on Tuesday night along the road connecting the provincial capital of Medan with the tourist resort of Berastagi, according to Tuahta Ramajaya Saragih, head of the provincial disaster management and mitigation agency.
Heavy downpours since Tuesday caused the landslides, and rainfall continues to create small-scale landslides at the scene, Saragih told Xinhua.
"The landslides have hit and buried cars, buses, and trucks traveling along the road. Reports indicate that between seven and eleven people are missing, likely trapped inside a passenger bus," he said.
He noted that heavy machinery has been deployed to assist with the search and rescue operations. To prevent further landslides and flash floods, he suggested the meteorology and geophysics agency consider weather modification techniques to reduce the intensity of rain in the province.
Kamellia, head of the operational unit of the provincial search and rescue office, said that joint rescue teams are working to find the missing. However, ongoing heavy rains and the risk of further landslides pose significant challenges to their efforts.
"Survivors have reported missing persons. A passenger bus, a minivan, and a truck hit by the landslides are visible, but we do not yet know how many other vehicles are buried under the debris," Kamellia told Xinhua. ■