Looting starts in aftermath of quake
Race for survival as bodies pile up in Indonesia
JAKARTA• Residents of Palu, on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi, turned to looting Sunday as they struggled to survive in the aftermath of a deadly 7.5 magnitude earthquake and tsunami that has so far killed 832 people.
Some 50 people are believed to be trapped in the wreckage of the Roa-Roa hotel. A village chief said 100 to 200 people could also be buried under the debris of a residential complex.
The cries from beneath the hotel, which appeared to have toppled over with its walls splintered like pickup sticks, went silent by Sunday afternoon. Officials had estimated about 50 people could be inside.
“We are trying our best. Time is so important here to save people,” said Muhammad Syaugi, head of the national search and rescue team. “Heavy equipment is on the way.”
Looters were spotted taking items from the damaged Ramayana shopping mall and plundering gas stations.
One earthquake survivor told The Daily Telegraph that he had been woken up by a noisy crowd ransacking his mini-market.
“Without justifying it, I understand why,” said the man, who identified himself as Suwanto. “My wife told me last night that our food supplies will last only two days. The big problem is clean water.”
Joko Widodo, the Indonesian president, who visited Palu Sunday, urged residents to be patient.
Roads into the area have been severely damaged. Amali, a truck driver, spoke of his terror in trying to bring in much-needed supplies along collapsed roads.
“In one part, we have to go past the edge of a cliff. If the driver loses concentration for just a moment then the truck could fall over the side,” he said.
The full extent of the devastation in Sulawesi has not yet been revealed as rescue teams are still struggling to reach the worst-affected areas.
Officials have warned that the death toll could rise into the thousands and announced mass burials Sunday in a desperate attempt to stave off disease.
Disaster authorities are now under scrutiny after scientists were taken by surprise by the tsunami, which reportedly reached six metres in height and hit the coastline at speeds in the hundreds of kilometres per hour.
The approach of the unexpected killer wave was caught in a chilling video on social media. Like a scene from a horror movie, a man screams desperately to warn people loitering on the beachfront street below.
From his standpoint a few stories above, he can see the surge of water but people are slow to react, their view blocked by beach huts. Cars drive past with no urgency, seemingly unaware.