Indonesia: Sunda Strait tsunami death toll touches 429
Jakarta, Dec 25 (IBNS): The death toll in the tsunami-hitting incident in Banten and Lampung provinces of Indonesia touched 429, media reports said on Tuesday.
The tsunami hit the nation on Saturday.
The toll was likely to continue rising as search-and-rescue teams were still finding bodies in the water and washed up on small outer islands, National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) spokesperson Sutopo Purwo Nugroho told The Jakarta Post on Tuesday.
"The data will change, as the joint search team is scouring Pandeglang, Serang, South Lampung, Penawaran and Tenggamus [regencies]," Sutopo said.
The tsunami struck coastal areas to the west of the capital Jakarta, in the middle of Saturday evening, local time, destroying houses, hotels and businesses. Latest reports suggest that the devastating waves were triggered by underwater landslides, following the eruption of the Anak Krakatau volcano.
The worst affected areas are Pandeglang and Serang districts in Banten province, and South Lampung and Tanggamus districts in Lampung province, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).
The Indonesian National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB), military, police, the National Search and Rescue Agency, national and local authorities – together with volunteers - are providing immediate assistance to those affected, added OCHA, noting that so far, the Indonesian Government has not requested international assistance.
Ring of Fire’ put Indonesia at particular risk:
Indonesia, given its geographical location along the so called “Ring of Fire” region in the Pacific – an earthquake-prone region, with several active volcanoes – has been hit hard by frequent earthquakes and tsunamis.
Just three months ago, in late September, more than 2,000 people were killed when a powerful earthquake struck just off the central Indonesian island of Sulawesi, setting off a tsunami that engulfed the coastal city of Palu.
In one of the worst disasters in modern history, the region was also hit by a devastating tsunami in December 2004, that claimed over 230,000 lives in 14 countries along the Indian Ocean, mostly in Indonesia.
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