Landslide in Papua, Indonesia kills 11

Heavy downpours wreaked havoc in the provincial capital of Papua that incurred flash floods and landslides, killing 11 people and leaving two missing on Saturday night, official said on Sunday. Three rivers burst their banks and drove the flash floods carrying heavy materials, smashing houses, Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, spokesman of national disaster agency told Xinhua via phone on Sunday. "Eleven people have been dead and two remain missing," he said. Rescuers, soldiers and police rushed to the scenes to search for the missing persons and repair the blocked roads, said Sutopo. Scores of people have fled homes to escape the catastrophe, he said. Seasonal downpours have often incurred floods each year in Indonesia, a chain of 17,500 islands where over millions of people live in vulnerable flood plains near the rivers.