 A rescuer carries a baby victim in arms in the tsunami-hit
Pangandaran, Indonesia, July 19, 2006. The death toll from a tsunami that
hit west Java and Central Java provinces of Indonesia on Monday has
surpassed 500, according to local authorities on Wednesday. (Xinhua
Photo) |
Among the fatalities and casualties, five foreign
citizens were killed, one foreigner missing and nine others wounded, said an
official in charge of the board named only Santi.
She said that the five death were one Dutch, one
Sweden, one Pakistan, and two Saudi Arabian, and the missing person was a French
citizen, she said.
The nine injured comprised two Dutch, one Japanese,
one Austrian, three Saudi Arabian, and two French, said Santi, adding that most
of them were tourists.
The official said that over 5,756 people had been
internally displaced and lived in refugee camps, including tents after the giant
wave of three to four meters destroyed buildings and infrastructures.
"The death was 525 and 273 still missing," Santi told
Xinhua.
In West Java, the worst hit area, the disaster covers
districts of Ciamis, Garut, Cianjur, Sukabumi and Tasik Malaya. In Central Java
it hit Cilacap, Kebumen and Banyumas and in Yogyakarta province Gunung Kidul and
Bantul, according to Indonesian Red Cross.
The Red Cross said that the aids had been underway
and rescue teams were searching those missing.
The quake measuring 6.8 on the Richter scale
triggered tsunami,hit the provinces on Monday at 3:19 p.m. local time.
Indonesia lies in a zone known as the Pacific "ring
of fire", which is prone to earthquakes and volcanic activity. Enditem