JAKARTA, July 13, 2024 (BSS/AFP) - Indonesian rescuers said Saturday they had ended the search for more than a dozen missing people after a landslide near an illegal gold mine killed at least 27.

The landslide hit a remote village in Bone Balango district on the central island of Sulawesi a week ago following heavy rain.

With the search effort called off and 15 people still missing, the toll could rise further, according to rescue officials.

"The search and rescue carried out the operation for seven days according to the standard operating procedure. Today is the last day," local search and rescue agency head Heriyanto, who goes by one name, told AFP.

"If there are signs of the missing victims with valid and accurate evidence and based on the request of the Bone Balango government, we will conduct an evacuation operation."

He said the agency had consulted the families of the missing before ending the search.

Hundreds of police officers and soldiers were deployed as part of the rescue effort, which was hampered by poor weather and damage to nearby bridges that forced rescuers to travel by foot.

A search and rescue official previously said that some victims were miners while others were people who operated stalls near the mine. 

Indonesia is prone to landslides during the rainy season between November and April, but July is usually dry and heavy rains are rare. 

In May, at least 15 people died after landslides and flooding in South Sulawesi province swept away dozens of houses and damaged roads.
 
A landslide in the same province a month before killed 20 people.