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Search on for tsunami survivors
18/07/2006 08:19 - (SA)
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| An Indonesian man carries his belongings as he walks past a house in Pangandaran after it was hit by a tsunami. (Dita Alangkara, AP) |
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Pangandaran - Rescuers desperately scoured the debris on Tuesday for survivors of the tsunami that killed more than 300 people and left scores missing when it slammed into Indonesia's Java coast.
In a harrowing reminder of the 2004 disaster that left 220 000 dead across Asia, walls of water up to three metres high smashed ashore on Monday, collapsing buildings and sending thousands of terrified residents fleeing.
The tsunami was triggered by a 7.7-magnitude undersea earthquake off the coast of Java island, where no early warning system had yet been put in place and many residents had no inkling of the tragedy to come.
'The sea is coming'
Heff Martin, a 26-year-old Swiss office worker, said he and his fiancée had only moments to "think with clear heads and use common sense" in order to save their lives.
"There were people screaming outside the hotel, so one of the hotel staff went outside to see what was happening. He came back screaming, 'There is a wave, there is a wave. The sea is coming, the sea is coming,'" he recalled.
"We quickly ran to the second floor and soon the waves came in and crashed into the first floor... We were there for about five minutes, and we went up to the rooftop by breaking through the ceiling."
Over 300 confirmed dead
According to reports on Tuesday, over 300 people were confirmed dead, while at least 295 people were injured. More than 160 are still missing, Sky News reported.
Agus Sutrisno, head of disaster relief in the district, said more than 1 500 workers were combing coastal areas looking for survivors and bodies.
"We suspect there are still many people buried under the debris. We lack heavy equipment such as backhoes and electric chainsaws," he said, adding that two excavators arrived early on Tuesday.
At least three other districts were affected but the Ciamis area in West Java province, where all the victims identified so far were found, was the worst-hit region.
Foreigners killed, missing
A 26-year-old Frenchwoman was among the deceased, a diplomatic source told AFP, while Metro TV reported that six foreign nationals were among the injured, including two Dutch and four Japanese.
Two Swedish children aged between five and 10 years old reported missing on Monday were yet to be located, another diplomatic source said.
Indonesian Red Cross disaster relief official Putu Suryawan said that more than 5 600 people had been initially displaced.
No early warning system
Tsunami alerts were issued for parts of Indonesia and Australia but they did not reach the victims, as there was no early warning system working in the disaster zone.
Pangandaran, a sleepy vacation spot with one of the finest beaches in Java that is popular with both domestic and foreign tourists, has been transformed into a ghost town infused with the stench of death.
The beach and nearby streets were littered with chunks of concrete, wooden planks that were once food stalls and tiles ripped from hotel roofs. Boats were marooned on shore and puddles of water lay everywhere.
- AFP
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