Indonesia Tsunami: 832 Killed Amid Fears Number Could Rise to Thousands

Local Editor

At least 832 people were killed as a 7.5-magnitude earthquake and powerful tsunami hit the island of Sulawesi in Indonesia, the country’s disaster agency announced as rescuers struggled to reach victims.

According to informed sources, the majority of those who have died were in the city of Palu, home to 380,000 people.

“The death toll is believed to be still increasing, since many bodies were still under the wreckage, while many have not been reached,” Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, the agency’s spokesman, said.

Meanwhile, Indonesian TV broadcast dramatic smartphone footage of the tsunami’s waves hitting Palu, causing people to scream and run in fear.

The water was at least 3 meters high when it arrived on land and is thought to have been 6 meters in some areas. 

Bodies covered in blue and yellow tarps lined the streets of Palu, and officials said they were digging a mass grave for at least 300 of the dead. 

Indonesian President, Joko Widodo, toured Palu on Sunday and said rescuers were having difficulty reaching victims because of a shortage of heavy equipment. 

“There are many challenges. We have to do many things soon, but the condition does not allow us to do so,” Widodo said. 

He said authorities were deploying more heavy machinery so emergency workers would be able to recover more victims on Monday.

The tsunami led to a shortage of fuel, electricity and food. 

The country’s disaster agency said that the area affected by the tsunami is bigger than initially thought.

In 2004, a huge earthquake off the Indonesian island of Sumatra triggered a tsunami across the Indian Ocean.

It killed 230,000 people in a dozen countries, including more than 120,000 in Indonesia.

Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team