https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/s...hits-beaches-around-sunda-strait-in-indonesia
At least 43 die as tsunami hits Indonesian islands of Java, Sumatra; volcanic eruption likely cause
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File photo of lava streaming down from Anak Krakatau (Child of Krakatoa) volcano during an eruption, on July 19, 2018.PHOTO: AFP
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JAKARTA (REUTERS, AFP) - Indonesia's disaster agency said 43 people were dead and another 584 injured after a tsunami struck coastal areas around the Sunda Strait between the islands of Sumatra and Java on Saturday night (Dec 22).
“We’re recapping reports of impacts from the tsunami that struck in the Sunda Strait, particularly Serang, Pandeglang and South Lampung,” agency spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho told Metro TV on Sunday morning, referring to the tidal wave linked to an earlier eruption of Anak Krakatau volcano.
“It was caused by a combination of an undersea landslide resulting from volcanic activity on Anak Krakatau and a tidal wave,” he said in a statement earlier. He added that the death toll would likely increase.
Video footage posted to social media by Nugroho showed panicked residents clutching flashlights and fleeing for higher ground.
According to a statement from the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG), “the tsunami hit several areas of the Sunda Strait, including beaches in Pandeglang regency, Serang, and South Lampung".
The tsunami struck at around 9.30pm local time on Saturday night, it said.
Dozens of buildings were destroyed by the wave, which hit beaches without warning.
Endan Permana, head of the National Disaster Mitigation Agency in Pandeglang, told Metro TV police were providing immediate assistance to victims in Tanjung Lesung in Banten province, a popular tourist getaway not far from Jakarta, as emergency workers had not arrived in the area yet.
“Many are missing,” Permana said.
Although relatively rare, submarine volcanic eruptions can cause tsunamis due to the sudden displacement of water or slope failure, according to the International Tsunami Information Centre.
Anak Krakatoa, known as the “child” of the legendary Krakatoa, is a small volcanic island that emerged from the ocean half a century after the legendary Krakatoa’s deadly 1883 eruption.
When Krakatoa erupted in the 19th century, a jet of ash, stones and smoke shot more than 20km into the sky, plunging the region into darkness, and sparking a huge tsunami that was felt around the world. The disaster killed more than 36,000 people.
Indonesia, one of the most disaster-prone nations on earth, straddles the so-called Pacific ‘Ring of Fire’, where tectonic plates collide and a large portion of the world’s volcanic eruptions and earthquakes occur.
Most recently in the city of Palu on Sulawesi island a quake and tsunami killed thousands of people.
In 2004 a tsunami triggered by a magnitude 9.3 undersea earthquake off the coast of Sumatra in western Indonesia killed 220,000 people in countries around the Indian Ocean, including 168,000 in Indonesia. Anak Krakatoa is one of 127 active volcanoes which run the length of the archipelago.
At least 43 die as tsunami hits Indonesian islands of Java, Sumatra; volcanic eruption likely cause
1 of 2
Published
2 hours ago
Updated
1 min ago
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JAKARTA (REUTERS, AFP) - Indonesia's disaster agency said 43 people were dead and another 584 injured after a tsunami struck coastal areas around the Sunda Strait between the islands of Sumatra and Java on Saturday night (Dec 22).
“We’re recapping reports of impacts from the tsunami that struck in the Sunda Strait, particularly Serang, Pandeglang and South Lampung,” agency spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho told Metro TV on Sunday morning, referring to the tidal wave linked to an earlier eruption of Anak Krakatau volcano.
“It was caused by a combination of an undersea landslide resulting from volcanic activity on Anak Krakatau and a tidal wave,” he said in a statement earlier. He added that the death toll would likely increase.
Video footage posted to social media by Nugroho showed panicked residents clutching flashlights and fleeing for higher ground.
According to a statement from the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG), “the tsunami hit several areas of the Sunda Strait, including beaches in Pandeglang regency, Serang, and South Lampung".
The tsunami struck at around 9.30pm local time on Saturday night, it said.
Dozens of buildings were destroyed by the wave, which hit beaches without warning.
Endan Permana, head of the National Disaster Mitigation Agency in Pandeglang, told Metro TV police were providing immediate assistance to victims in Tanjung Lesung in Banten province, a popular tourist getaway not far from Jakarta, as emergency workers had not arrived in the area yet.
“Many are missing,” Permana said.
Although relatively rare, submarine volcanic eruptions can cause tsunamis due to the sudden displacement of water or slope failure, according to the International Tsunami Information Centre.
Anak Krakatoa, known as the “child” of the legendary Krakatoa, is a small volcanic island that emerged from the ocean half a century after the legendary Krakatoa’s deadly 1883 eruption.
When Krakatoa erupted in the 19th century, a jet of ash, stones and smoke shot more than 20km into the sky, plunging the region into darkness, and sparking a huge tsunami that was felt around the world. The disaster killed more than 36,000 people.
Indonesia, one of the most disaster-prone nations on earth, straddles the so-called Pacific ‘Ring of Fire’, where tectonic plates collide and a large portion of the world’s volcanic eruptions and earthquakes occur.
Most recently in the city of Palu on Sulawesi island a quake and tsunami killed thousands of people.
In 2004 a tsunami triggered by a magnitude 9.3 undersea earthquake off the coast of Sumatra in western Indonesia killed 220,000 people in countries around the Indian Ocean, including 168,000 in Indonesia. Anak Krakatoa is one of 127 active volcanoes which run the length of the archipelago.
