At least 168 people are dead and more than 745 have been injured after a tsunami hit beaches around the Sunda Strait in Indonesia late on Saturday, the government’s Disaster Mitigation Agency says.
Hundreds of homes and buildings have been damaged and 30 people are missing, while the death toll is “likely to grow”, said the agency’s Sutopo Purwo Nugroho in a tweet, according to the Sydney Morning Herald.
VIA THE HERALD:
Another tsunami was possible because Saturday night’s wave had been caused by an eruption of the Anak-Krakatau volcano, rather than an earthquake.
There was no early warning, because it’s a tsunami caused by a volcano.”
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A machine that monitors volcanic activity on Anak-Krakatoa, which is 156 km west of Jakarta, was damaged by the volcano’s eruption, the BMKG said.
This meant that authorities did not have enough accurate data about the event.
In turn, there was confusion initially over whether a tidal wave – rather than a tsunami – had been triggered by the eruption.
It also meant the tsunami early warning system was not triggered.
THE EERY MOMENT IT HIT AS THE BAND PLAYED
The Indonesian band Seventeen was in concert at the Tanjung Lesung beach in Banten when the Tsunami hit. The bass player and road manager were killed. Three other band members and the singer’s wife are missing.
This (awful) video shows the Indonesian band Seventeen in concert at the Tanjung Lesung beach in Banten – until the tsunami struck. It has been widely shared online. The band’s bass player and road manager are dead, three other band members and the singer’s wife are missing pic.twitter.com/Yejoq8D4zG
— James Massola (@jamesmassola) December 23, 2018
The group’s lead vocalist posted to Instagram and asked for prayers.
CLIPS OF THE DAMAGE
Pantauan udara daerah terdampak tsunami di Pantai Kalianda Kabupaten Lampung Selatan. Korban dampak tsunami di Lampung Selatan per 23/12/2018 pukul 13.00 WIB: 35 orang meninggal duniq, 115 orang luka dan 110 unit rumah rusak. Pendataan masih dilakukan. pic.twitter.com/HcXVkEhqBx
— Sutopo Purwo Nugroho (@Sutopo_PN) December 23, 2018
Dozens of cars, shipping containers, tractors and boats picked up and thrown like children’s toys by the tsunami – to say nothing of the destroyed houses – in and around the coast road at Carita, Indonesia. pic.twitter.com/Ozdi9WQSa7
— James Massola (@jamesmassola) December 23, 2018
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