Death toll from Indonesia earthquake and tsunami rises to 420

Buildings destroyed by disaster in Indonesia. Photo: AFP.

The head of Indonesia's National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) Willem Rampangilei told reporters in Sulawesi on the night of September 29 that the death toll in Palu had reached 420, according toReuters.

"We are having difficulty deploying heavy equipment to search for victims under the rubble of buildings, as many roads leading to Palu city are damaged," Rampangilei said.

At least 540 people were seriously injured, the national Antara news agency said. The disaster agency said 17,000 people had been evacuated.

The Red Cross said its staff and volunteers were heading to the affected areas. "We have received some communication about damage in Palu city, but we have not received any information from Donggala and this is extremely worrying. More than 300,000 people live there," a Red Cross statement said.

At the Roa-Roa Hotel in Palu, which was completely flattened by the earthquake, many people are still missing. "All we know is that 24 guests were successfully evacuated and one person died," hotel owner Ko Jefry said on the evening of September 29. "An estimated 50 to 60 people are still trapped."

A 7.5 magnitude earthquake struck off the island of Sulawesi on the evening of September 28, creating a tsunami up to 6 meters high that devastated many coastal areas of Palu city and Donggala town.

BNPB spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho said thousands of homes, hospitals, shopping malls and hotels had collapsed. Vice President Jusuf Kalla warned the death toll could rise into the thousands.