The death toll from a burst dam on the outskirts of Jakarta climbed to 96 Sunday as rescue teams searched for at least 131 people listed as missing three days after the accident, officials said. Rustam Pakaya, Head of the Health Ministry's crisis centre, said up to 190 people were injured after the Situ Gintung dam in the Tangerang district, just south of the capital collapsed early Friday, unleashing a torrent of water that tore through a low-lying valley. Flimsy houses were inundated and residents surprised in their sleep by waves of mud and water. Pakaya said that by late afternoon Sunday, the death toll had risen to 96 after more bodies were recovered. He said as many as 131 people remained missing. An earlier official report said 102 people were unaccounted for, according to a report of DPA. More than 350 residents became homeless in the deluge and were staying at temporary shelters erected at several locations around the disaster area, Pakaya said. Rescue operations meanwhile continued, with hundreds of soldiers, police and volunteers taking part in the search involving mechanical excavators and bulldozers. Rescuers were still concentrating on the two worst-hit residential areas, he said. The search and rescue operation would continue for a week, Pakaya added.
