The death toll from the collapse of the Gunung Kuda stone quarry in Indonesia's West Java province rose to at least 17 on Saturday, with search teams continuing to look for eight missing workers amid dangerous conditions. The collapse occurred Friday in Cirebon district, trapping workers under rubble and debris at the base of a steep limestone cliff. Emergency responders, assisted by police, soldiers, and local volunteers, recovered 16 bodies from the site, while one of the dozen rescued survivors died later at a hospital, according to local police chief Sumarni. "The search operation has been hampered by bad weather, unstable soil and rugged terrain," Sumarni said, adding that efforts were ongoing to locate those still trapped. Authorities are investigating the cause of the collapse, and six individuals, including the quarry owner, have been questioned by police. Footage aired by Indonesian broadcasters showed rescuers using five excavators and digging by hand in difficult terrain as they worked to locate the missing. West Java Governor Dedi Mulyadi, who visited the quarry site in the past before taking office, described it as hazardous and not meeting basic safety standards. "At that time, I didn't have the authority to shut it down," he said in an Instagram video posted Friday. Following the collapse, Mulyadi ordered the closure of the Gunung Kuda quarry and four other similar sites across the province. Informal or illegal extraction operations are common across Indonesia, often offering a fragile source of income for workers while exposing them to significant risks. Accidents at such sites are frequent, involving landslides, tunnel collapses, or chemical exposure from toxic substances like mercury and cyanide, frequently used with minimal safety precautions. In 2024, at least 15 people were killed in an unauthorized gold mine collapse triggered by heavy rains in Sumatra. — Agencies
