Dozens still missing after landslide on Indonesia's Java island kills at least 25 people

Dozens of people are still missing following a landslide on Indonesia's Java island on Saturday that killed at least 25 people.

The search continues for 72 people who are believed to have been buried under tonnes of mud, rocks and uprooted trees after the landslide, triggered by days of torrential rain, hit the West Bandung district of West Java province.

Improved weather on Sunday helped a 250-member search team recover 14 more bodies, bringing the total recovered to 25, according to Ade Dian Permana from the province's search and rescue office.

More than 30 homes in Pasir Langu village were buried in the landslide. Around 230 residents living near the area have been evacuated to temporary government shelters.

Video footage released on Saturday by Basarnas, Indonesia's search and rescue agency, showed rescuers using farm tools and bare hands to pull a body from the mud.

Heavy equipment and machinery were mostly not in use due to the ground being too soft and unstable.

Basarnas chief Mohammad Syafii said the condition of the terrain was continuing to complicate search operations.

"We are at the mercy of the weather, and the slide is still mud... flowing and unstable," he said.

"With the area this wide, we'll use every asset we have... drones, K‑9 teams and ground units, but safety comes first."

Mr Permana estimated the height of the mounds of mud to be up to 5m (16ft) and said that "some homes are buried up to the roof level".

He said that "if the slope does not stabilise, crews are prepared to continue manually".

Indonesian vice president Gibran Rakabuming Raka, who visited the area on Sunday, said measures would be taken to prevent a repeat of the disaster and urged local authorities to "address the issue of land conversion in disaster-prone areas".

Rescue officials said the operation will continue non-stop as long as conditions allow, but warned that more rain could further destabilise the slope.

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Environmental activists have claimed the landslide was the result of years of environmental degradation due to land conversion for development that, they say, violated land-use rules in the region.

Wahyudin Iwang, of Indonesian environmental group Walhi West Java, said the landslide reflected longstanding neglect of planning regulations in the North Bandung Area, or KBU, a conservation zone spanning about 38,543 hectares across four cities and regencies in West Java.

Mr Iwang said the protected highland area acts as a critical water-catchment zone and environmental buffer for the Bandung Basin, one of Indonesia's most densely populated regions.

"This landslide is the accumulation of activities that were not in line with spatial planning and environmental functions," Mr Iwang said.

The disaster comes less than two months after floods and landslides hit parts of South and Southeast Asia - including Indonesia's largest island, Sumatra - killing more than 1,300 people, according to authorities.

In January 2025, more than 20 people were killed in floods and landslides following torrential rain in Central Java province.

Indonesia, an archipelago of more than 17,000 islands, is prone to frequent flooding and landslides as a result of seasonal rains and high tides from around October to April.

(c) Sky News 2026: Dozens still missing after landslide on Indonesia's Java island kills at least 25 people