A tsunami disaster in the Indonesian islands of Sumatra and Java has killed dozens of people and caused severe damage. According to the Civil Protection Department of Sunday at least 168 people were killed and 750 injured, 30 others are considered missing.
The authorities expect, however, that the casualties are likely to increase – also because the tidal waves broke in the middle of the holiday season on popular tourist beaches. Coastal stretches were made on both sides of the strait known as Sunda Strait between Sumatra and Java.
According to the Indonesian Geophysical Agency, the cause was probably an eruption of the volcanic Anak Krakatau volcano, which in turn led to an underwater landslide. Accordingly, the eruption occurred on Saturday evening at 21.03 clock (local time), 24 minutes later, the tsunami hit land.
Serious damage in Carita Beach (Indonesia) by tsunami
Flood increased disaster
The situation was exacerbated by the simultaneous flood, said civil protection spokesman Sutopo Nugroho. According to him, both in Sumatra’s Lumpang province on the north side of the Sunda Strait, people were killed and in Java’s province of Banten, which lies south of the strait.
Some of the most severely hit areas are in Banten, where there are many beach accommodation for tourists. In view of the holiday season there was a lot of activity. According to Nugroho, at least 430 houses, nine hotel complexes, ten ships and dozens of cars were damaged. Serious damage caused by the tsunami was reported, among others, by the tourist beach Carita. Nugroho spread via Twitter video footage of rubble piles in front of ruined houses and completely demolished cars.
Triggered by underwater landslide
Sad reminder of 2004
Indonesia lies on the Pacific Ring of Fire, the geologically most active zone on earth. For the inhabitants, earthquakes, tsunamis and volcanic eruptions are not a new experience. The island nation has as many active volcanoes as no other country in the world.
The 2004 tsunami killed more than 160,000 people, more than anywhere else in the region. In total, around 230,000 people were killed in the eastern states bordering the Indian Ocean.
Less than three months ago, the Indonesian island of Sulawesi, which is popular with holidaymakers, was hit by a severe earthquake and a tsunami triggered by it that cost more than 2,200 lives. At the time, bitterness was spreading among many Indonesians about what they saw as the slow response of the Indonesian authorities to the disaster.
