It’s been nearly a month since the disastrous earthquake that shook Indonesia. On September 28th, 2018, a 7.5 magnitude earthquake hit the Central Sulawesi province causing a devastating tsunami and landslides that led to thousands of deaths and injuries. The tsunami waves struck over six meters high into Sulawesi at 800 kilometers per hour.
Image Source: The Telegraph
The Indonesia Disaster Management Agency reported more than 2,000 people dead with more than 2,500 critically injured. Sadly, the catastrophic effects of the earthquake have left more than 330,000 people without homes or shelter and more than 75,000 people have been reported as missing. It will take years for Indonesia to recover from the 2018 Sulawesi earthquake along with the multiple others that occurred prior.
Image Source: ABS-CBN News
Just this year alone, Indonesia has suffered from ten deadly earthquakes with six occurring from July to August. The reason Indonesia experiences so many earthquakes each year is due to its location along the Pacific Ring of Fire. The Ring of Fire is where tectonic plates collide. The Sulawesi earthquake was not the worst to affect Indonesia; in 2004 a 9.1 magnitude earthquake struck the island of Sumatra causing a deadly tsunami. This disaster killed more than 230,000 people in various countries. The tsunamis and volcanic eruptions are directly caused by powerful earthquakes, however, Indonesia also suffers from severe floods as well.
Image Source: CNBC
Nearly two weeks after the devastating natural disasters, students and teachers were encouraged to go back to work. Students made efforts to clean up their schools and government officials worked on searching for bodies. Some areas such as Balaroa and Petoba were affected so badly that they are now considered mass graves. Because of the thousands of people without homes or shelter, public parks were used as refugee camps until more aid is provided. The United Nations is currently trying to raise 50 million dollars in disaster aid for the country.
The damage that Indonesia has experienced from these natural disasters has called for international aid from the Red Cross, Save the Children, Australia, and Britain’s governments, along with the United Nations. They have been in dire need of medical supplies, hygiene items, basic food items, clean water, and generators. Power has slowly begun to come back to small shops and traffic lights have started to flicker back to life. Although the amount of destruction and devastation is extensive, the people of Indonesia remain hopeful and grateful.
Sources:
https://www.worldvision.org/disaster-relief-news-stories/2018-indonesia-earthquake-facts
https://www.cnn.com/2018/09/29/asia/earthquakes-indonesia-explainer/index.html