35 killed in Indonesia floods, landslides

JAKARTA, June 19 (UPI) -- At least 35 people have died and 25 are missing Sunday after heavy rains and floods triggered landslides in central Java.

Thousands of homes are underwater, said Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, spokesman for the Indonesian Disaster Management Agency. And landslides swept cars and people off streets.

The flooding and landslides occurred on Java, the southernmost of the county's main islands and home to the capital, Jakarta.

This month is usually relatively dry, but the National Climatology, Meteorology and Geophysics Agency has issued a warning for potential rain for late June and early July in five provinces.

High tides and waves are forecast for the southern coast of Sumatra, Java and East Nusa Tenggara.

Flooding and landslides commonly occur in Indonesia, which includes 250 million people and 17,000 islands. That includes 135 million people in Java, the world's most populous island.