The death toll reached 43 people, with at least 600 injured late Saturday night after a tsunami rushed the beaches of Indonesia around the Sunda Strait following the eruption of the Krakatoa volcano (Dec 23). The Sunda Strait is located between the islands of Java and Sumatra.
At least two people were missing. Hundreds of buildings were damaged, according to Indonesia’s Disaster Management Agency, which said the death toll is likely to rise in the regions of Pandeglang, South Lampung and Serang.
The wall of water, at least 20 meters tall (65 feet) hurled itself against homes and hotels at approximately 9:27 pm Saturday.
NEW: Video shows a tsunami crashing into a venue in Indonesia where the band Seventeen was performing https://t.co/4P9zDCRkKC pic.twitter.com/q9RYOaPTt8
— BNO News (@BNONews)
Indonesia’s Meteorology and Geophysics Agency said the tsunami may have been caused by undersea landslides triggered by the Krakatoa volcano erupting close to the island of Anak Krakatau, the volcanic island formed over the years from Krakatoa, combined with tidal waves caused by the full moon.
More than 2,250 people were reported to have died and at least 68,450 homes were damaged after a 7.4 magnitude earthquake and subsequent tsunami hit Indonesia’s Central Sulawesi region on September 28th.
Israel’s IsraAID humanitarian aid organization has been working with community partners in the region to provide safe water and psychological support to survivors of the devastating earthquakes and the tsunami that followed.
The IsraAID team in Central Sulawesi includes experts in WASH (water, sanitation, and hygiene), mental health support and disaster response management who are working with community partners in rural areas hit particularly hard by the disaster.
Central Sulawesi is located to the east and some distance away from the site of the current disaster.