JAKARTA (Reuters) - At least 60 people have been killed and dozens are missing on the remote Indonesian island of Nias after days of heavy rains triggered floods and landslides, the official Antara news agency said on Wednesday.
Three villages were swept away in the predawn hours of Tuesday as most villagers were still sleeping.
Hundreds of homes were also damaged on the Indian Ocean island, off Sumatra, about 1,325 kilometers (825 miles) northwest of Jakarta,.
Rescue teams are searching for the missing and evacuating hundreds of families, but local government official Binahati said the death toll could increase because of the large number of missing, Antara said.
The island is also popular with foreign surfers, but there were no initial reports of foreigners being involved