Tragedy in Papua: Landslide at Illegal Gold Mine Leaves 19 Missing

Indonesian rescue teams are searching for 19 missing people after heavy rain triggered a landslide at a gold mine in West Papua's Arfak mountains. The disaster left one person dead and four injured. Rescue efforts are hampered by bad weather and poor road conditions, raising fears of more fatalities.

In Indonesia's eastern region of Papua, rescue teams are in a race against time to locate 19 individuals who went missing after a landslide struck a gold mine. Heavy rains on a late Friday evening led to the devastating landslide in the small-scale mining area of the Arfak mountains.

The natural disaster has so far claimed the life of at least one person, left four injured, and 19 unaccounted for, according to spokesperson Abdul Muhari from Indonesia's disaster mitigation agency. In response, over 40 rescue workers, including police and military personnel, have been deployed to the site.

Challenges persist in the form of damaged roads and treacherous mountainous terrain, exacerbated by adverse weather conditions. These have severely delayed rescue operations, which commenced on Sunday, a full 12 hours after the incident. The search continues amidst fears that the casualty figure could rise, recalling past tragic events linked to illegal mining in the region.

(With inputs from agencies.)