50 killed as 7.5-quake leads to tsunami in Indonesia
Jakarta, Sep 29 : At least 50 people have been confirmed dead by officials on Saturday after a strong tsunami triggered by a 7.5-magnitude earthquake hit a coastal Indonesian city on Friday.
Over 350 others were injured, a disaster agency official said on Saturday after three shallow quakes of 6.0, 7.4 and 6.1-magnitude struck off the central province and triggered the tsunami near Talisa beach of Dongala district.
Waves up to 2 metre high swept through Palu on Sulawesi island. Video on social media showed people screaming and fleeing in panic and a mosque amongst the buildings damaged, the BBC reported.
All victims have been rushed to hospitals, spokesman of the national disaster management agency Sutopo Purwo Nugroho said.
The casualties were only counted in Palu, and the victims in Donggala district, including the coastal areas near Talisa beach, were not included in the figure, Nugroho told Xinhua news agency.
"Accordingly, the death toll and injuries as well as the damage will likely climb," he said. Most victims were hit by debris and falling blocks of concretes.
The tsunami triggered by the quake devastated buildings and residential areas in the coastal areas. Specific damage was still unknown as the risk assessment was underway, the meteorology and geophysics agency said.
Soldiers, police, disaster management agency personnel and volunteers were evacuating the quake and tsunami victims. Power outage has cut off communications hampering relief efforts, Nugroho said.
"We have not received comprehensive reports yet because communications are cut. Many bodies were found along the shoreline because of the tsunami, but the numbers are still unknown," Nugroho told the media.
It was not clear whether the deaths came in the quake or the resulting tsunami.
Palu is home to more than 300,000 people. Rescue operations have started but a minister said that communications had been disrupted and that the runway in the city was damaged, although it was hoped that helicopters would still be able to land.
The Jakarta Post reported that Hercules aircraft was deployed to provide disaster relief in Palu.
The earthquake hit around 6 p.m. on Friday. A tsunami warning was issued, but lifted within the hour. Dramatic video of the tsunami hitting Palu showed high waves sweeping away several buildings and then the large tilted mosque in the town, about 80 km from the quake's epicentre.
"The situation is chaotic, people are running on the streets and buildings collapsed. There is a ship washed ashore," said Dwikorita Karnawati, head of Indonesia's meteorology and geophysics agency.
In August, a series of deadly quakes struck the Indonesian island of Lombok, with the biggest, on August 5, killing more than 460.
A 2004 tsunami triggered by an earthquake off the Indonesian island of Sumatra killed 226,000 across the Indian Ocean, including more than 120,000 in Indonesia.
Indonesia is prone to earthquakes because it lies on the Ring of Fire -- the line of frequent quakes and volcanic eruptions that circles virtually the entire Pacific rim.
More than half of the world's active volcanoes above sea level are part of the ring.
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Absconding doctor held in hit-and-run case that killed woman in Kochi
Kochi (PTI): Police on Friday took a doctor into custody after he had been on the run following a hit-and-run accident near here that claimed the life of a 19-year-old woman, officials said.
Police said Dr Cyriac George was taken into custody from a resort in Kannankulam, near Wagamon, in Idukki district, after local police received a tip-off about his presence there.
Police personnel in plain clothes reached the resort, and on seeing them, George attempted to flee but failed in the attempt. The accused was handed over to a police team from Angamaly that reached Wagamon, officials said.
Earlier in the day, police had arrested George’s father, George Mathew of Athirampuzha in Kottayam district, for allegedly helping the accused evade arrest.
Mathew was summoned to the Angamaly police station and, after interrogation, his arrest was recorded for aiding the accused to remain at large, police said. Police said Mathew had met George after the accident and assisted him in going into hiding.
Officials also said the vehicle involved in the hit-and-run incident was registered in Mathew’s name.
The victim, Jasliya Johnson (19) of Edavanakkad, sustained serious injuries while she was walking back to her hostel in Angamaly at around 7.30 pm on February 28.
She was declared brain dead at a private hospital here on March 3, after which her parents consented to donate her liver, kidneys and corneas. Dr George was working as a house surgeon at a private hospital in Ernakulam.
The investigation team had issued a lookout circular and conducted raids in Ernakulam, Kottayam and Idukki districts before tracing him, officials said. George had also approached the Kottayam District and Sessions Court seeking anticipatory bail.
