800 people in Baiturrahman Mosque before tsunami

KOTA PALU ( Sulawesi): The area around the Baiturrahman Mosque, located in the centre of Palu City, is one of the worst affected by a magnitude 7.4 earthquake on the Richter scale and a tsunami incident here last Friday.

It was estimated that 800 people were preparing to perform the Maghrib prayers when the disaster struck.

One victim, Sultami Abdul Rohim, 31, who was near the mosque during the incident, said before the waves rose, there was a strong vibration which caused cracks on buildings.

“The shock was so powerful that motorcyclists fell off their machines and everyone panicked and tried to save themselves.

“After the tremors, suddenly a wave as tall as a utility pole struck the building of the mosque and a nearby shopping centre,” he told Bernama yesterday.

Sultami said in the confusion he managed to escape by going up a shophouse nearby.

According to him, the mosque area also housed a religious school but all its students were safe as the school had ended earlier.

“The number of bodies found in the area near the mosque was among the largest, about 300 people,” he said.

According to the Indonesia National Agency for Disaster Management ( BNPB) Indonesia, the number of victims of the earthquake and tsunami in Central Sulawesi had increased to more than 1,400 people. — Bernama