Indonesia tsunami: Death toll rises to 62

Jakarta [Indonesia], Dec 23 (ANI): At least 62 people were killed in the tsunami that struck Sunda Strait, an official from Indonesia's National Disaster Mitigation Agency said on Sunday.

Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, the head of public relations at Indonesia's National Disaster Mitigation Agency, tweeted that 62 people were killed, 584 wounded and 20 others were said to be missing.

Furthermore, Nugroho added that hundreds of homes and buildings were damaged due to the calamity. He said that heavy equipment has been deployed for evacuation.

Nugroho was quoted by CNN as saying: "The worst hit area is Pandeglang district, along the coastal area, including residential and tourist areas in the Tanjung Lesung beach, Lesung beach, Teluk Lada, Panimbang and Carita beach."

Indonesia's Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysical Agency said that the quake occurred at 9:03 pm (local time) when the Anak Krakatau erupted, adding that the tsunami struck after 24 minutes.

"The Geological Agency detected at 21.03 local time that the Anak Krakatau (Child of Krakatoa) erupted. It's possible the materials around Anak Krakatau collapsed to the sea and triggered the tsunami and affected beaches around Sunda Strait," the agency said in a statement.

The department further said that the tsunami was likely caused due to a combination of underwater landslides in the aftermath of the volcanic eruption.

It is speculated that the tsunami was caused by activity around a volcanic island in the strait, Krakatoa, which is 156 km west of the Indonesian capital of Jakarta. (ANI)