Survivors steer clear of ‘ghost hotel’

PALU: The Mercure Hotel here has been dubbed a “ghost hotel” by locals after more than 100 people were believed to have been buried alive following the 7.4-magnitude earthquake on Sept 28.

The five-storey hotel, which was a favourite among tourists because of its proximity to the Talise beach, sank into the ground when a tsunami wave crashed into it.

When the hotel’s lowest floor sank into the earth, many still inside were trapped.

Locals claimed that although 10 days had passed, around 100 bodies, mostly customers and hotel staff, had yet to be retrieved.

A local, Yulia M. Sohaimi, 34, said the stench of rotting bodies from the hotel grew stronger every day as there had yet to be a concerted effort to retrieve the remains.

“The rescuers could be focusing their attention on other areas, such as Balaroa and Petobo, as there are more victims there.

“The day before, a team from Indonesia’s rescue unit found the body of a man, trapped on the hotel’s second floor,” he said.

It is learnt that the process of retrieving the remains has been made difficult due to the unstable condition of the structure, and the mass of bodies trapped in between the debris.

Based on reports, a French rescue team had used high-technology equipment to detect movement from survivors among the debris, but did not receive positive signs.

A resident of the Donggala district, Nurhayati Heryanto, 40, said locals were steering clear of the building as they realised that the hotel was housing many bodies.