Indonesia volcano tsunami live updates: A resident searches for items among the ruins of a villa after the area was hit by a tsunami, at Carita beach in Padeglang, Banten province, Indonesia. (Reuters)

                   DECEMBER 23rd 2018

By Patryk Krych | The World Daily

Indonesia Tsunami Kills 222, and Leaves Hundreds Injured

According to officials, who’d spoken on Sunday, the highly reported eruption of the Anak Krakatau volcano in Indonesia had caused an underwater landslide, which is believed to be the cause for the ensuing tsunami that had swept through the Indonesian islands of Java and Sumatra, killing 222 people and leaving hundreds more injured.

Spokesman for the disaster mitigation agency, Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, said that the tsunami, having struck with very little warning, had brought about the destruction of hundreds of homes late on Saturday, leaving most of them “heavily damaged”. The tsunami struck around the rim of the Sunda Strait, forcing thousands of residents to evacuate to higher ground.

Rahmat Triyono, an official at the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency, said “Those who have evacuated, please do not return yet,” with the heavy insinuation that the evacuated areas may still very well be dangerous and lead some to injury.

The death toll had been rounded to 222 dead, 843 injured, and 28 missing by the disaster agency by 17:40 pm. The archipelago, sitting on the infamous Pacific Ring of Fire, is no stranger to earthquakes and natural disasters, with an earthquake and tsunami having struck in September, killing more than 2,000 people on Sulawesi. Even so, it was an event that few were prepared to face.

Medical help and rescuers are suffering delays, with upturned cars, trees, and debris dotting or altogether blocking the roads. Affected areas are in need of ambulances and medical cares, but until something can be done to get around some of the damages, the death tolls may be seeing a rise soon enough.

Vice president Jusuf Kalla concurred with this belief, having said at a press conference that the death toll will “likely increase”, arguably once the missing 28 are found, or if those who’d suffered lethal injury are left untreated.

Despite authorities claiming that there had been warning sirens going off in certain areas before the tsunami, several witnesses have made the claim that they received no warnings, neither human or natural that the 2-3 meter wave was about to strike, not even noticing any receding waves nor earthquakes.

“I had to run, as the wave passed the beach and landed 15-20 meters inland. Next wave entered the hotel area where I was staying and downed cars on the road behind it,” stated Norwegian tourist Øystein Lund Andersen over Facebook, who’d been in Anyer town with his family when Saturday’s tsunami struck, “Managed to evacuate with my family to higher ground through forest paths and villages, where we are taken care of by the locals.”

It’s been stated on Twitter by President Joko Widodo; running for a re-election this new year, that he had “ordered all relevant government agencies to immediately take emergency response steps, find victims and care for the injured”.

An end-of-year party for state utility company PLN, where a local rock band formed in 1999 had been playing in front of hundreds, had managed to catch television footage of the tsunami flooding the outdoor stage in a great surprise. Four of the band’s members had been killed, along with 29 PLN members.

“The water washed away the stage which was located very close to the sea,” the band had stated, “The water rose and dragged away everyone at the location. We have lost loved ones, including our bassist and manager ... and others are missing.”

There are many speculations on what exactly caused the tsunami, with undeniable links to the recent eruption. Earthquake geologist and a professor in the University of Michigan; Ben van der Pluijm, stated that “Instability of the slope of an active volcano can create a rock slide that moves a large volume of water, creating local tsunami waves that can be very powerful. This is like suddenly dropping a bag of sand in a tub filled with water.”

According to officials, who’d spoken on Sunday, the highly reported eruption of the Anak Krakatau volcano in Indonesia had caused an underwater landslide, which is believed to be the cause for the ensuing tsunami that had swept through the Indonesian islands of Java and Sumatra, killing 222 people and leaving hundreds more injured.

Spokesman for the disaster mitigation agency, Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, said that the tsunami, having struck with very little warning, had brought about the destruction of hundreds of homes late on Saturday, leaving most of them “heavily damaged”. The tsunami struck around the rim of the Sunda Strait, forcing thousands of residents to evacuate to higher ground.

Rahmat Triyono, an official at the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency, said “Those who have evacuated, please do not return yet,” with the heavy insinuation that the evacuated areas may still very well be dangerous and lead some to injury.

The death toll had been rounded to 222 dead, 843 injured, and 28 missing by the disaster agency by 17:40 pm. The archipelago, sitting on the infamous Pacific Ring of Fire, is no stranger to earthquakes and natural disasters, with an earthquake and tsunami having struck in September, killing more than 2,000 people on Sulawesi. Even so, it was an event that few were prepared to face.

Medical help and rescuers are suffering delays, with upturned cars, trees, and debris dotting or altogether blocking the roads. Affected areas are in need of ambulances and medical cares, but until something can be done to get around some of the damages, the death tolls may be seeing a rise soon enough.

Vice president Jusuf Kalla concurred with this belief, having said at a press conference that the death toll will “likely increase”, arguably once the missing 28 are found, or if those who’d suffered lethal injury are left untreated.

Despite authorities claiming that there had been warning sirens going off in certain areas before the tsunami, several witnesses have made the claim that they received no warnings, neither human or natural that the 2-3 meter wave was about to strike, not even noticing any receding waves nor earthquakes.

“I had to run, as the wave passed the beach and landed 15-20 meters inland. Next wave entered the hotel area where I was staying and downed cars on the road behind it,” stated Norwegian tourist Øystein Lund Andersen over Facebook, who’d been in Anyer town with his family when Saturday’s tsunami struck, “Managed to evacuate with my family to higher ground through forest paths and villages, where we are taken care of by the locals.”

It’s been stated on Twitter by President Joko Widodo; running for a re-election this new year, that he had “ordered all relevant government agencies to immediately take emergency response steps, find victims and care for the injured”.

An end-of-year party for state utility company PLN, where a local rock band formed in 1999 had been playing in front of hundreds, had managed to catch television footage of the tsunami flooding the outdoor stage in a great surprise. Four of the band’s members had been killed, along with 29 PLN members.

“The water washed away the stage which was located very close to the sea,” the band had stated, “The water rose and dragged away everyone at the location. We have lost loved ones, including our bassist and manager ... and others are missing.”

There are many speculations on what exactly caused the tsunami, with undeniable links to the recent eruption. Earthquake geologist and a professor in the University of Michigan; Ben van der Pluijm, stated that “Instability of the slope of an active volcano can create a rock slide that moves a large volume of water, creating local tsunami waves that can be very powerful. This is like suddenly dropping a bag of sand in a tub filled with water.”

By Patryk Krych | The World Daily