Floods, landslides in Indonesia, 24 people were killed

At least 24 people died from heavy rains and floods caused landslides in Central Java province, Indonesia.

Heavy rains flooded some areas from yesterday, causing floods and landslides in 16 towns and cities in the province. In addition to those killed, 26 others are still missing, CNN quoted Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, spokesman for Indonesia's Disaster Management Agency, said.

Indonesian police and villagers move the body of a victim swept away by water.(Photo: AFP).

Flooding and landslides mainly occur in Purworejo district. According to some reports, this is where 11 people died and 26 people were missing. At least 9 people were killed when the crowd was cleaning up an isolated road after a small landslide. Unexpectedly, a larger landslide collapsed, causing many people to fail to keep up.

Disaster response officials, military and police are working with volunteers and non-governmental organizations to rescue and evacuate people from the affected area.

Indonesian military soldiers seek victims of landslides buried in Caok village, Purworejo.(Photo: Reuters).

Landslides are not rare in Indonesia. Last month, 15 students who took a vacation at a popular tourist destination in western Indonesia also died when a landslide swept over their campsite.