Cold lava and mud landslides leave more than 40 dead in Indonesia

A deluge of cold lava and mudslides have killed 43 people in Indonesia after monsoon rains triggered flash flooding.

Another 15 people are missing after the landslides and rain also caused a river to breach its banks, according to the authorities.

Nearly 200 homes and buildings were buried or damaged as the extreme conditions swept through mountainside villages on the island of Sumatra late on Saturday.

The cold lava came from Mount Marapi and is a mixture of volcanic material, rocks and pebbles that flow down the slopes in the rain.

Mount Marapi has been active since January, while a surprise eruption of the volcano late last year killed 23 climbers.

It is among more than 120 active volcanoes in Indonesia.

Abdul Malik, the chief of the West Sumatra province's rescue team, said: "The heavy rain swept materials such as ash and large rocks from the Marapi volcano."

Ilham Wahab, who heads the West Sumatra Disaster Mitigation Agency, said: "Bad weather, damaged roads and access blocked by thick mud and debris were hampering relief efforts."

He added at least 19 people were injured in the flash floods and rescuers were continuing the search for those reported missing.

Officials said villages situated in the Agam and Tanah Datar districts were worst hit.

The flash floods also caused main roads around the Anai Valley Waterfall area in Tanah Datar to be blocked by mud, police said.

Disaster management agency officials said 16 bridges had been affected by the flash flooding.

Heavy rains cause frequent landslides and flash floods in Indonesia.

The disaster came just two months after heavy rains triggered flash floods and a landslide in West Sumatra, killing at least 26 people and leaving 11 others missing.

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Индонезия