The death toll from the earthquake on the Indonesian island of Java increased on Tuesday, November 22, reaching 268 victims and several hundred injured. Rescuers are stepping up efforts to find survivors under the rubble.
The epicenter of Monday’s 5.6-magnitude earthquake, which struck West Java, the most populous province in the Southeast Asian archipelago, was near the city of Sianjur. As a result of the earthquake, 268 people died, according to the latest report, which was announced by the head of the National Disaster Management Agency Suharyanto during a press conference.
151 are still missing
“Our priority is the search and evacuation of victims“said the official, reporting 151 missing persons. This is the deadliest earthquake to hit Indonesia since 2018. The victims were killed by collapsing buildings as well as landslides caused by the tremors that hit this very hilly region.
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Indonesian President Joko Widodo, during a visit to the scene, promised compensation, appealing to rescue teams.mobilize their staffto allow the evacuation of the victims first. Drone footage shows the extent of the damage caused by the earthquake. bulldozers are trying to clear a road after an entire section of a brown earthen hill collapsed.
Students and residents were killed
Rescuers are trying to make their way through debris and fallen trees to reach areas where residents may be trapped, 34-year-old rescuer Dimas Reviancia, who is working with dozens of people, told AFP. “I haven’t slept at all since yesterday (Monday), but I have to continue because there are victims who have not been found.“, He says.
Among the victims, there are particularly students of Islamic boarding schools or even residents who were killed by the collapse of the roof or walls of their houses. “The room collapsed, and my feet remained under the rubble. Everything happened so fastAprizal Mulyadi, 14, who was exterminated and brought to safety by one of his friends, who later lost his life, told AFP.
Relief efforts have been delayed
In this rural area, where houses are made of both wood and concrete, blocked roads and power outages make the search difficult. More than 2,000 houses were damaged. About 13,000 people have been moved to evacuation centers, West Java Governor Ridwan Kamil said. This official announced 162 casualties on Monday evening.
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After the earthquake shook buildings as far away as the capital Jakarta, doctors in cities treated patients outdoors as well as in makeshift care units under tents. In an AFP photographer’s photo, we see a father carrying his son’s body, wrapped in a white sheet, in his arms through his village near Sianjur. Many other residents continued to search for their missing relatives amid the chaos
Infants and toddlers
Rahmi Leonita’s father was on a motorcycle when the earthquake shook the city of Sianjur, and she has been looking for him since the day before. “His phone is switched off. I am in shock. I am very worried but still hopefulto find him, said the 38-year-old Indonesian woman with tears streaming down her cheeks.
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Victims, including infants and small children, sit on corrugated iron sheets at a shelter in Jiherang village, near the town of Qianjur. Nunung, 37, a 37-year-old mother who like many Indonesians has only one name, saved her son from the disaster by pulling him out of the rubble of a collapsed house. “I had to extricate ourselves by digging. Nothing left, nothing I could savehe told AFP, his face covered in dried blood.
Brittle volcanic deposits
The damage from the earthquake, which struck just after 1:20 p.m. local time on Monday, included more than 60 aftershocks ranging from 1.8 to 4 magnitudes in the city of Sianjur, home to about 175,000 residents. According to the National Geological Survey, the nature of the region’s terrain, the brittle volcanic deposits of the Quaternary period, have “could emphasize shocks» earthquakes created by an active fault.
Located “zone of fireIn the Pacific Ocean, where the tectonic plates meet, Indonesia regularly experiences earthquakes or volcanic eruptions. In January 2021, an earthquake with a magnitude of 6.2 on Celebes Island killed more than 100 people.
Source: Le Figaro
I am David Wyatt, a professional writer and journalist for Buna Times. I specialize in the world section of news coverage, where I bring to light stories and issues that affect us globally. As a graduate of Journalism, I have always had the passion to spread knowledge through writing.