Search and rescue team members look for survivors in Palu, Central Sulawesi, Indonesia. (Photo: Xinhua/VNA)Jakarta (VNA) – The death toll from thestrong quakes and subsequent tsunami that hit Indonesia’s Central Sulawesiprovince last month has risen to 2,045 as of October 10.
According to the country’s National Agency for DisasterManagement (BNPB), 1,636 people were killed in the provincial capital of Palu,the worst-hit in the twin disasters, 171 people in Donggala, 222 in Sigi, 15 inParigi Moutong and one in Pasangkayu. Nearly 1,000 bodies have been interred ina mass grave.
Up to 10,679 people were injured, 2,549 of who were insevere condition, and 671 others are still unaccounted for.
A spokesperson from BNPB, Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, said moreand more people have been evacuated. It was estimated that the double disastershave damaged a total of 67,310 houses and so far, 82,775 have been placed in112 shelter camps across the province.
Indonesia has declared that the search for survivors willbe terminated on October 11, the 14th day after the catastrophe dueto the potential risk of an epidemic. The local authorities have determined tofocus on evacuating, arranging residence and providing treatment for injuredvictims.
Central Sulawesi will be moved from emergency response toreconstruction. It is expected to take two years to implement thereconstruction plans here.
Central Sulawesi was ravaged by two devastating quakesmeasuring 6.1 and 7.5 on the Richter scale on September 28. The second wasfollowed by giant tsunami waves on the afternoon of the same day, destroyingthousands of buildings and roads.
The catastrophe was the latest to hit Indonesia, which is frequently struck byearthquakes, volcanic eruptions and tsunamis because of its location on the"Ring of Fire", an arc of volcanoes and fault lines in the PacificBasin.
A series of earthquakes in July and August killed nearly 500 people on theholiday island of Lombok, hundreds of kilometres southwest of Sulawesi.
In December 2004, a massive 9.1-magnitude earthquake off the northernIndonesian island of Sumatra triggered a tsunami across the Indian Oceancountries, killing 220,000 people in 13 countries, including more than 168,000in Indonesia.–VNA
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