1 dead, 5 missing in Indonesia landslides

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LUWUNG, Indonesia, Feb. 7 (UPI) -- One person is dead and five others missing after a series of landslides buried a small village on the foothills of Slamet Mountain in Indonesia, rescuers said.

A minor landslide in Luwung hamlet prompted some villagers to try to protect their corn crops Wednesday evening. The villagers were taken by surprise by a second, larger landslide that buried eight people, The Jakarta Post reported Thursday.

One person identified as Rapinah, 40, was found dead and two others -- 40-year-old Sukim, 40, and his son Hamdan, 4 -- were found alive and taken to a hospital for treatment.

Rescuers were searching Thursday morning for the five still missing, identified as Rakun, 50; Sutar, 50; Kasrap, 60; Sumi, 65; and Taryo, 55.

"After the incident, two more landslides occurred," said Tri Joko Priyono, the coordinator of Cilacap's search and rescue team, making the rescue more difficult.

"The main problem is that the excavator we need to dig the land cannot reach the incident site, as it is located on the slope of the hill. So, we're trying to find them manually," he added.

Rain continued to fall Thursday increasing the risk of further landslides.

"It is very dangerous," Tri Joko said.