JAKARTA, Indonesia - Landslides triggered by heavy rain killed 4 people and left 18 others missing on Indonesia's Sumatra island while burying more than a dozen houses, an official said on Sunday, January 27.

"Heavy rains caused landslides in Agam district in West Sumatra," National Disaster Mitigation Agency spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho said in a text message.

"Four people were found dead, three others were injured and sent to hospital... Search is ongoing for 18 (missing) people," he added.

15 houses were also buried by the landslide, Nugroho said.

Floods and landslides are common in Indonesia, which is prone to frequent bursts of heavy rain.

Heavy rain in the capital Jakarta this month caused 32 deaths and at its peak forced nearly 46,000 people to flee their inundated homes, Nugroho told AFP earlier. - Rappler.com