The death toll from a devastating landslide in West Java, Indonesia, has climbed to 74, authorities confirmed on Friday, February 6, 2026, nearly two weeks after the disaster struck a remote mountain village.
The landslide occurred on January 24, 2026, when days of heavy rainfall triggered a massive collapse of soil and rock on the slopes above Pasirlangu village in the West Bandung regency of West Java province. The wall of mud, debris, and boulders swept through the community without warning, burying dozens of homes, cutting off access roads, and trapping residents under tonnes of earth.
Ade Dian Permana, head of the local search and rescue agency (Basarnas West Java), announced the updated toll during a press briefing. He confirmed that 74 victims have now been identified and recovered, with search teams continuing to comb through the disaster zone for remaining missing persons.
“There are still a number of residents on the missing persons list who have not yet been found,” Permana stated, though he did not provide an exact number of those still unaccounted for. “We are still searching, but the operation has now shifted to the recovery phase.”
Rescue operations have involved thousands of personnel, including national police, military units, Basarnas teams, local volunteers, and heavy machinery operators. Teams have worked around the clock using excavators, backhoes, and manual digging to clear mud, uprooted trees, and shattered concrete. However, progress has been severely hampered by persistent bad weather.
“Weather conditions remain the main challenge,” Permana explained. “Thick fog and continued rain are covering the search area, significantly impacting visibility and stability. The ground remains unstable, increasing the risk to rescue workers.”
Despite these difficulties, authorities have vowed to continue the operation until all possible recoveries are made, though the focus has gradually shifted from immediate life-saving efforts to recovering bodies and supporting displaced survivors.
Among the victims were 23 Indonesian navy personnel who were undergoing training in the area when the landslide struck. The Indonesian Navy confirmed the loss, describing it as a tragic blow to the service. The presence of military personnel in the zone at the time has added a layer of national mourning to the disaster.
Local authorities report that around 50 houses were either completely destroyed or heavily damaged. More than 160 people remain displaced, many now living in temporary shelters set up by the government and humanitarian organizations. The displaced include families who lost homes, livestock, and farmlands, compounding the economic hardship in an already rural and relatively poor area.
The West Bandung landslide is the latest in a series of deadly natural disasters to hit Indonesia in recent months. Late last year, widespread flooding and landslides across the neighbouring island of Sumatra claimed approximately 1,200 lives and displaced more than 240,000 people, one of the worst disaster seasons in decades for the region.
Government officials and environmental experts have repeatedly pointed to deforestation and forest degradation as major contributing factors to the increasing frequency and severity of landslides and flash floods. In Sumatra, rapid land clearing for palm oil plantations, mining, and illegal logging was cited as having stripped protective vegetation from slopes, allowing rainwater to run off unchecked and destabilize the soil.
Similar concerns have been raised in West Java, where population pressure, agricultural expansion, and unregulated construction on steep terrain have left communities increasingly vulnerable. Indonesia sits on the Pacific Ring of Fire and experiences frequent seismic activity and intense monsoon rains, making it one of the world’s most disaster-prone nations.
The national government has pledged emergency aid, including food, clean water, medical supplies, and temporary housing materials. President Prabowo Subianto has directed relevant ministries to accelerate relief and reconstruction efforts while promising a review of land-use policies in high-risk zones.
As the search continues under difficult conditions, grief and calls for accountability have grown among affected families and community leaders. Many are urging stronger enforcement of environmental protections and better early-warning systems to prevent similar tragedies in the future.
The Pasirlangu landslide serves as a stark reminder of Indonesia’s ongoing struggle to balance development, environmental conservation, and disaster resilience in one of the world’s most naturally hazardous regions.
