The death toll is rising by the hour in Indonesia, as the 3rd major tremor in 18 months strikes the island nation,
REUTERS VIDEO HERE
The first reports indicated that 30 individuals had died in the violent earthquake that shook Indonesia earlier today. Hours later, the death toll is up to 3,000 and rising!
The location of the epicenter. (Reuters)
The death toll in this dangerous quake is rising over 3,000 as many villages were reduced to rubble:
Countless victims were buried alive when the 6.2 magnitude quake struck at dawn, turning houses into tombs of stone and setting off panic in a country that has been plagued by natural disasters.
An official at the social affairs ministry’s disaster relief centre said at least 3,002 people were dead and more than 2,500 seriously injured in the quake on the south coast of Java island.
The Indonesian Red Cross said some 200,000 people had been displaced. The death count was being updated almost by the hour.
Tens of thousands are left homeless.
A victim waits for evacuation following a strong earthquake in Klaten, Yogyakarta, Central Java, Indonesia, Saturday, May 27, 2006. A powerful earthquake flattened buildings in central Indonesia early Saturday, killing at least 2,900 people and injuring thousands more in the country’s worst disaster since the 2004 tsunami. (AP Photo/Kidung Jagad)
Rescuers are still digging out survivors from the mass destruction:
At least 2,900 people have been seriously injured, and many more are still thought to be trapped under rubble and collapsed buildings.
Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono called on rescuers to work around the clock, as he visited the area with a team of Cabinet ministers on Saturday.
He has also ordered the military to help evacuate victims.
The Indonesian Red Cross said it had sent rapid response teams to the area, and 21 field hospital units were working at full capacity.
In the worst-hit areas, rescuers worked to pull bodies from the rubble, as residents preparing to bury the dead dug mass graves.
Patients who were injured in the earthquake are treated in the front yard of an overcrowded hospital in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, Saturday, May 27, 2006. The powerful earthquake flattened homes and hotels in central Indonesia early Saturday as people slept, killing more than 3,000 and injuring thousands more. (AP Photo/Achmad Ibrahim)
The Agonist has more.
Blue Crab Boulevard notes how close this earthquake is to Mt. Merapi that has been threatening to erupt.
