At least 162 killed and 700 hurt as earthquake hits Indonesia's Java island

[misskit]

An earthquake shook Indonesia's main Java island Monday afternoon, killing at least 162 people, local officials said.


Around 700 people were injured, National Disaster Mitigation Agency chief Suharyanto said.


"Many were hurt because they were hit by collapsed buildings," he added.


The death toll reached 162 Monday night, local media reported citing West Java Gov. Ridwan Kamil.


More than 5,300 people had been displaced, the Indonesian disaster mitigation agency said in a statement. It added that at least 25 people were still trapped under collapsed buildings.


The U.S. Geological Survey said the 5.6-magnitude earthquake struck West Java at 1:21 p.m. local time (1:21 a.m. ET). It was centered in the Cianjur region at a depth of 6.2 miles — about 47 miles southeast of the Indonesian capital, Jakarta.


At least 25 aftershocks were recorded by the country's Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysical Agency.


Earthquake hits Indonesia'''s Java, killing at least 162 people

[misskit]

Traumatised relatives await news of missing in quake-hit Indonesia

Traumatised relatives awaited news on Wednesday of the fate of loved ones missing after an earthquake shattered a town in Indonesia’s West Java on Monday, with more heavy machinery deployed to clear landslides that have buried villages.


The death toll from Monday’s 5.6-magnitude quake in Cianjur has continued to rise as the full extent of the disaster has emerged. Authorities say 268 are now confirmed dead, up from about 160 on Tuesday, and more than 150 are missing.


Recovery efforts on Wednesday will focus on one of Cianjur’s worst-hit districts, Cugenang, where it is believed at least one village was buried by a landslide.


Footage from the area shows residents digging in brown earth with their bare hands, or using hoes, sticks, crowbars and other tools.


“If it was just an earthquake, only the houses would collapse, but this is worse because of the landslide,” said Zainuddin, who was searching for six missing relatives.


“In this residential area there were eight houses, all of which were buried and swept away.”


More than 1,000 police officers have been deployed to bolster search and rescue teams.


Indonesia is one of the most earthquake-prone nations on earth and regularly records stronger offshore earthquakes. But Monday’s 5.6-magnitude quake was particularly deadly as it struck in a densely populated area at shallow depth of just 10 km (6 miles).


Officials also said poor building standards led to many deaths.


During a visit on Tuesday to Cianjur, about 75 km (45 miles) south of the capital Jakarta, President Joko Widodo called for reconstruction efforts to include earthquake-proof housing.


There was an urgent need to ensure surgery could take place immediately as hospitals had limited capacity due to damage from the earthquake, Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin said.


“My priority is no more deaths,” he said during a visit to the disaster zone.


“The first priority is to make sure that badly injured patients are being taken care of so they can survive.”

Traumatised relatives await news of missing in quake-hit Indonesia | Thai PBS World : The latest Thai news in English, News Headlines, World News and News Broadcasts in both Thai and English. We bring Thailand to the world

[DrWilly]

During a visit on Tuesday to Cianjur, about 75 km (45 miles) south of the capital Jakarta, President Joko Widodo called for reconstruction efforts to include earthquake-proof housing.

But that won't happen, particularly in somewhere semi rural like Cianjur.

[katie23]

^Sadly, it's the same in PH. Houses are built (esp in rural areas) without build permits or if they are, some don't follow the building codes. Saw it in my neighborhood - a house was built last year and I was able to see the progress of the build. Many times I said to myself, is that allowed?!

*****

I saw the news of the rescue (alive) of a 6-year old bpy. A portion of the wall shielded the kid. His mom & grandma had both died from being crushed by debris. The boy looked unscathed. Good news (that the boy was rescued), but sad that he's now an orphan.

I hope more people are rescued. More power to the rescuers & volunteers.