• Torrential rains triggered a landslide at a gold mine in Papua, killing six and leaving fourteen missing.
• Rescue operations faced severe challenges due to bad weather and poorly maintained roads.
• Search efforts will resume on Tuesday after being suspended amid hazardous conditions.

On May 19, rescue teams in Papua began searching for 14 miners missing after a deadly landslide struck a small-scale gold mine, reportedly run by local residents, in the Arfak mountains. Torrential rains that hit the region late on Friday caused the disaster, leading to six confirmed deaths, and injuries to four others, as temporary shelters were engulfed by the landslide according to Reuters and The Jakarta Post.

The Indonesian disaster agency reported that initial search efforts were severely hindered by adverse weather conditions and damaged roadways, requiring rescue teams to travel approximately 12 hours from the nearest town to reach the remote mine site. Yefri Sabaruddin, head of the rescue team, mentioned that "the damaged roads and mountainous tracks hampered the rescue efforts," and emphasized the need for efficient evacuation of the victims according to Channel News Asia and Al Jazeera.

Authorities stated that search operations will resume on Tuesday, after they were forced to halt due to the ongoing rains. The landslide at the illegal gold mine has highlighted the dangers associated with small-scale mining operations in Indonesia, which often occur in remote areas that are difficult for regulators to monitor. Previously, a similar incident in West Sumatra resulted in multiple fatalities, underscoring the risks posed by unregulated mining activities according to Reuters, Channel News Asia, and Al Jazeera.