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Landslides in Indonesia leave two dead and 21 missing

Nov 14, 2025

Rescue workers are combing through rubble searching for missing people after landslides. -AP

Emergency workers are scrambling to rescue 21 missing people after torrential rain caused landslides in Indonesia's Java island that have claimed two lives.

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Several days of heavy rainfall in the region caused the landslides that hit dozens of houses in three villages in Indonesia's Central Java province on Thursday evening, officials said in a statement.

"The unstable ground conditions posed a challenge for the search and rescue team in searching for victims," the statement said.

Nevertheless, the joint team continued their search and rescue efforts on Friday morning, said National Disaster Management Agency spokesperson Abdul Muhari in the statement.

Rescuers are using heavy equipment, extraction tools and manual tools to reach difficult areas.

Footage released by the National Search and Rescue Agency showed rescuers searching for victims buried under the rubble of the houses.Â

Heavy seasonal rain from about October to March frequently causes flooding and landslides in Indonesia, an archipelago of 17,000 islands where millions of people live in mountainous areas or near fertile floodplains.

In January, more than 20 residents were killed after being swept away in floods and landslides after torrential rains in Central Java province.