Nicole Johnston (00:01):
Flattened buildings and mountains of concrete, the aftermath of a 5.6 magnitude earthquake that struck the island of Java. Dozens of people have been killed and hundreds injured as rescuers search for survivors. Homes were not built to withstand the force of a quake like this.
Speaker 2 (00:20):
I was crying and immediately grabbed my husband and children. If I didn’t pull them out, we might have become victims. The house was shaking as if it was dancing.
Nicole Johnston (00:34):
It struck near the town of Cianjur in the middle of the day. The local governor says schools were hit hard and most of those killed were children. Filled hospitals have been set up in the streets, everywhere survivors in the middle of this chaotic, crowded community.
Speaker 3 (00:53):
Most suffered a broken bone or were injured because of falling objects and incision wounds. And there were also around 13,784 evacuees.
Nicole Johnston (01:06):
Crews worked through the night to save lives. There’s been dozens of aftershocks, and access is difficult in remote areas. With roads blocked by landslides, people are bracing themselves for a large number of dead. This country is no stranger to earthquakes. It’s in an area known as the Pacific Ring of Fire, one of the most active regions in the world for volcanic eruptions and tremors. The trauma of this one will linger as the enormity of this disaster sinks in.
(01:42)
Nicole Johnston, Sky News.