
A landslide struck the village of Sumedang in West Java Saturday night, followed hours later by a second that engulfed rescuers digging for survivors.
The death toll has nearly doubled from the 11 deaths reported on Sunday.
And 19 residents are still missing, including a half dozen children, but the chance of finding any of them alive was slim, said Bandung rescue agency spokesman Seni Wulandari.
“We are still stepping up efforts to find their bodies,” she added.
Fatal landslides and flash floods are common across the Indonesian archipelago, where seasonal downpours are frequent and relentless.
In September last year, at least 11 people were killed in landslides on Borneo Island, while a few months earlier landslides in Sulawesi killed dozens.
Indonesia’s disaster agency estimates that 125 million Indonesians – nearly half the country’s population – live in areas at risk of landslides.