Search continues for Indonesia quarry collapse victims
JAKARTA: Indonesian authorities will continue searching on Sunday for eight people trapped in a rock collapse at a quarry in West Java, where the death toll has reached 17 with six injured, the search and rescue agency Basarnas said.
The toll, as reported by the victims' families, is provisional, the agency said in a statement late on Saturday.
The site of Friday's collapse in Cirebon is dangerous and 'does not meet safety standards for workers', West Java Governor Dedi Mulyadi posted on Instagram.
The Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry said in a statement it would investigate the cause of the collapse and conduct an assessment to identify any potential further landslides.
Cirebon Regency is prone to soil movement, especially when precipitation is above normal, while the area of the collapse has a cliff slope, the chief of the ministry's geological agency, Muhammad Wafid, said in the statement.
Wafid said the undercutting method used in the open mining area and the steep slope may also have played a role in the collapse.
'While carrying out evacuation and search efforts, (rescuers) must pay attention to the weather and steep slopes, and not carry out activities during and after heavy rain, because this area still has the potential for further landslides that could hit or bury officers,' Wafid said. (Reporting by Bernadette Christina in Jakarta; Editing by William Mallard)
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Star
4 days ago
- The Star
Stifling heat in Singapore could ease as onset of SW monsoon brings breezier weather
SINGAPORE: Some relief from the stifling heat is expected in the coming weeks, with the onset of windier conditions during the south-west monsoon season. The Meteorological Services Singapore (MSS), under the National Environment Agency, said on Monday (June 2) that winds over Singapore are expected to strengthen and blow from the south-east or south-west in early June 2025. The Republic was previously in the throes of the inter-monsoon season, where winds were light and variable. The light winds and occasional clear sky conditions, had made hot afternoons common, the MSS told The Straits Times. April and May are usually the warmest months of the year. Professor Matthias Roth, who teaches urban climatology at the National University of Singapore, said that the stronger and more regular winds that come with the monsoon may lower air temperatures slightly, following the high temperatures experienced in May. The weatherman noted that daily maximum temperatures registered above 35 deg C at some locations between May 23, and May 28. The highest daily maximum temperature of 36.2 deg C was recorded at Paya Lebar on May 24. 'Although heat and humidity levels will remain high, the breezier conditions should offer some relief, making people feel more comfortable compared to the hot and often stifling inter-monsoon period,' Prof Roth added. From wielding umbrellas and handheld fans while outdoors, to opting for private hire vehicles over public transportation, people have been desperately seeking measures to combat the inferno of the inter-monsoon season between April and May. The Straits Times explains how the monsoon seasons can affect weather in Singapore, and how people can cope with rising temperatures. What is the south-west monsoon season? This season, usually experienced in Singapore between June and September, is marked by winds blowing mainly from the south and south-easterly directions. This period is also considered the traditional dry season for the southern Asean region, where countries such as Indonesia are located. This is also often the season when the region experiences haze, although Straits Times checks on the website of the Asean Specialised Meteorological Centre showed only a smattering of hotspots on Sumatra, the Indonesian island close to Singapore. During the south-west monsoon season, afternoon showers may be expected in the Republic, and Sumatra squalls could occasionally occur between pre-dawn hours and noon. A Sumatra Squall is an organised line of thunderstorms which develops over the Indonesian island of Sumatra or the Straits of Malacca, often overnight. It moves eastwards, at times producing widespread heavy rain and gusty winds as they cross Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore. Why did it feel so hot during the inter-monsoon season? The inter-monsoon season is a transitionary period between the two main monsoon seasons - the south-west monsoon and the north-east monsoon season, when winds blow mainly from the north and north-east. The first inter-monsoon season is experienced from late March to May, while the second is expected between October and November. Singapore's climate is heavily influenced by its location near the equator, where the sun is almost directly overhead, said Prof Roth. With the inter-monsoon season marked by weaker winds, clearer skies and low rainfall, more direct sunlight hits the Republic. Low rainfall and light winds mean less cooling and more heat build-up near surfaces, which is worsened by the abundance of concrete surfaces and a relative lack of vegetation, he added. Concrete absorbs and stores a significant amount of heat, but subsequently radiates it back out into the atmosphere, causing a heating sensation. While it may have felt more humid than usual, the MSS said average humidity levels were within the usual range of between 40 per cent and more than 90 per cent on most days. Dr Koh Tieh Yong, co-chair for the Working Group for Asian-Australian Monsoon at the World Climate Research Programme, said that the perception of elevated humidity levels was partly due to the lighter inter-monsoon winds that did not ventilate the air. Water vapour evaporated from the surface thus accumulates more effectively, since winds were not strong enough to disperse them. Rainfall during this period also tends to come and go in short bursts - typically in the afternoon, with widespread heavy rain and strong winds associated with Sumatra squalls occurring occasionally. For example, on the morning of May 18, a Sumatra squall event brought heavy thundery showers over many parts of Singapore. However, such spells of rain may not necessarily bring prolonged relief. A squall with overcast conditions usually lasts for a short duration of about one to two hours, before the sun returns and heats everything up again, noted Professor Steve Yim, director of the Centre for Climate Change and Environmental Health at Nanyang Technological University (NTU). 'The fallen rain may evaporate into the air with the heating, and the additional moisture would make us feel hotter,' added Prof Yim, who is also from NTU's Asian School of the Environment and Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine, and Principal Investigator at NTU's Earth Observatory of Singapore. - The Straits Times/ANN
The Sun
6 days ago
- The Sun
Search continues for Indonesia quarry collapse victims, death toll at 17
JAKARTA: Indonesian authorities will continue searching on Sunday for eight people trapped in a rock collapse at a quarry in West Java, where the death toll has reached 17 with six injured, the search and rescue agency Basarnas said. The toll, as reported by the victims' families, is provisional, the agency said in a statement late on Saturday. The site of Friday's collapse in Cirebon is dangerous and 'does not meet safety standards for workers', West Java Governor Dedi Mulyadi posted on Instagram. The Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry said in a statement it would investigate the cause of the collapse and conduct an assessment to identify any potential further landslides. Cirebon Regency is prone to soil movement, especially when precipitation is above normal, while the area of the collapse has a cliff slope, the chief of the ministry's geological agency, Muhammad Wafid, said in the statement. Wafid said the undercutting method used in the open mining area and the steep slope may also have played a role in the collapse. 'While carrying out evacuation and search efforts, (rescuers) must pay attention to the weather and steep slopes, and not carry out activities during and after heavy rain, because this area still has the potential for further landslides that could hit or bury officers,' Wafid said. (Reporting by Bernadette Christina in Jakarta; Editing by William Mallard)
The Sun
6 days ago
- The Sun
Search continues for Indonesia quarry collapse victims
JAKARTA: Indonesian authorities will continue searching on Sunday for eight people trapped in a rock collapse at a quarry in West Java, where the death toll has reached 17 with six injured, the search and rescue agency Basarnas said. The toll, as reported by the victims' families, is provisional, the agency said in a statement late on Saturday. The site of Friday's collapse in Cirebon is dangerous and 'does not meet safety standards for workers', West Java Governor Dedi Mulyadi posted on Instagram. The Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry said in a statement it would investigate the cause of the collapse and conduct an assessment to identify any potential further landslides. Cirebon Regency is prone to soil movement, especially when precipitation is above normal, while the area of the collapse has a cliff slope, the chief of the ministry's geological agency, Muhammad Wafid, said in the statement. Wafid said the undercutting method used in the open mining area and the steep slope may also have played a role in the collapse. 'While carrying out evacuation and search efforts, (rescuers) must pay attention to the weather and steep slopes, and not carry out activities during and after heavy rain, because this area still has the potential for further landslides that could hit or bury officers,' Wafid said. (Reporting by Bernadette Christina in Jakarta; Editing by William Mallard)
