Landslides leave up to 81 dead or missing in Indonesia

JAKARTA (Reuters) - Landslides and floods caused by torrential rains have left up to 81 people dead or missing in Indonesia's Central Java province, police and rescue officials said on Wednesday.

A provincial official said the landslides were the worst to hit the region in quarter of a century as thousands of people moved to shelters after their homes were buried or washed away.

Rescue workers and police were struggling to reach the affected areas as roads were cut off by floods and mud, said provincial police spokesman Syahroni.

By late afternoon, 36 bodies had been recovered while 30 others were still buried under thick mud in Karang Anyar district near the banks of the Bengawan Solo river, said Heru, head of the local disaster coordinator agency.

Another person was found dead and 14 were missing after landslides and floods in Central Java's Wonogiri and Sukoharjo districts, said Sarjono, a spokesman for the provincial government.

Landslides are frequent in Indonesia, where tropical downpours can quickly soak hillsides and years of deforestation often means there is little vegetation to hold the soil.

But Heru said he did not believe deforestation had contributed to the latest landslides.

"The forest in the area is thick," he said.

A lack of heavy equipment was slowing rescue efforts, officials said.