Villagers make their way across a river after the bridge was destroyed by a flood at the Banjar Irigasi village in Lebak, Banten province on Thursday. Indonesia's disaster agency warned of more deaths after torrential rains pounded the Jakarta region, triggering floods and landslides that killed at least 23 and left vast swaths of the megalopolis underwater. Photo: AFP

Indonesian rescuers mounted a desperate search Friday for those missing after flash floods and landslides sparked by torrential rains killed at least 43 people across the Jakarta region while health authorities raced to prevent disease outbreaks.

About a dozen people were still unaccounted for after record rains that started on New Year's Eve pounded the capital and left swathes of the megalopolis, home to 30 million, underwater. Authorities said 192,000 residents have been evacuated to temporary shelters.