Indonesia earthquake, Tsunami causes massive damage on Islands

After being hit by strong 7.5 magnitude earthquake, the Indonesian city of Palu has been been hit by a deadly tsunami wave. According to the Associated Press report, Indonesian Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) had warned that, a tsunami was possible as a result.

After 8 pm local time on Friday, tsunami occurred along the shoreline of Palu. Indonesian TV showed a video in which people are screaming and runner in fear.

According to the reports, houses were swept away and several families are missing after the tsunami occurred. The strong earthquake has also collapsed several houses around the city.

The earthquake rocked the same region, leaving one person killed and and injuring 10 earlier in the day.  The spokesperson of the National Disaster Management Agency said in a statement that the first quake lasted almost 10 seconds and forced panicked residents to rush out of their houses.

Meteorological, Climatological and Geophysical Agency of Indonesia said, “Based on historical data and tsunami modeling, this earthquake is not capable of generating a tsunami affecting the Indian Ocean region.”

Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, a spokesman for Indonesia’s disaster management agency, told a local TV station that houses were carried away by the tsunami and families were missing, but darkness hindered the search Friday night.

According to the report, between July 29 to August 19, At least 557 people died and almost 400,000 were displaced by four earthquakes with intensities varying between 6.3 and 6.9 magnitude which struck Lombok island.

Indonesia had witnessed its deadliest ever tremor struck Sumatra island in the year 2014, which had triggered a tsunami and killed almost 280,000 people in around a dozen countries along the Indian Ocean, registering as the biggest number of casualties in Indonesia.

Also read: Earthquake in Lombok, Indonesia; claims 82 lives