bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

hooksAmpRedirectArticle

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

paywallTypes

createdDate

publishedDate

urlAlias

moreOnThisArticles

sponsorType

commentCount

authorLocations

authors

corrections

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

articleSpeeches

socialHeadline

headline

images

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

sponsor

pdfFiles

seriesReverseOrder

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

readingTime

customTimezone

liveContents

Agence France-Presse

Another tsunami could strike Indonesia, experts warned on Sunday, a day after more than 200 people were killed by a wave triggered by a volcanic eruption.
What caused the tsunami?
The tsunami “appears to have been caused by an underwater collapse” of part of the Anak (or “child of”) Krakatoa volcano, said David Rothery of The Open University in Britain.
Anak Krakatoa is a new island that emerged around 1928 in the crater left by Krakatoa, whose massive 1883 eruption killed at least 36,000 people.
The volcano has been particularly active since June, noted Jacques-Marie Bardintzeff at the University of Paris-South.
The tsunami that struck on Saturday was the third to hit Indonesia in six months.
Indonesia has 127 active volcanoes and lies on the Pacific Ocean’s “Ring of Fire” where earthquakes and volcanic eruptions are frequent.


Why was it so deadly?
Anak Krakatoa, located in the Sunda Strait between Java and Sumatra islands, is close to densely populated zones.
And while the tsunami was relatively small, Richard Teeuw of the University of Portsmouth in England said: “Such waves – laden with debris – can be deadly for coastal communities, especially if there is no warning.”

Kondisi bangunan yang banyak rusak akibat terjangan tsunami di daerah Sumur Kabupaten Pandeglang. Petugas dan kendaraan evakuasi sudah bisa menembus daerah Sumur. Sebelumnya beberapa jalan dan jembatan rusak. Alat berat dikerahkan untuk membantu evakuasi korban. pic.twitter.com/ZL55sh3DXL
— Sutopo Purwo Nugroho (@Sutopo_PN) December 24, 2018

Simon Boxall of Southampton University added that the region was also in spring tide, “and it would appear that the wave hit some of the coastal areas at the highest point of this high tide, exacerbating the damage done.”
It also struck at night, further catching people by surprise.

Why were people not warned?
“We were helpless given how sudden” the event took place, Bardintzeff said. “The time between cause and effect was a few dozen minutes, which was too short to warn the population”.
“Tsunami warning buoys are positioned to warn of tsunami originated by earthquakes at underwater tectonic plate boundaries,” Rothry said.
“Even if there had been such a buoy right next to Anak Krakatoa, this is so close to the affected shorelines that warning time would have been minimal given the high speeds at which tsunami waves travel.”
Shocking moment tsunami rips through stage as band performs
Could more tsunami be coming?
“The likelihood of further tsunami in the Sunda Strait will remain high while Anak Krakatoa volcano is going through its current active phase because that might trigger further submarine landslides,” Teeuw said.


Bardintzeff also warned that “we must be wary now that the volcano has been destabilised”.
Teeuw said that sonar surveys would now be needed to map the sea floor around the volcano, but “unfortunately submarine surveys typically take many months to organise and carry out,” he added.
But “devastating tsunami caused by volcanic eruptions are rare; one of the most famous (and deadly) was caused by the eruption of Krakatoa in 1883.”


Hawaii’s Kilauea volcano spews lava 30 metres high, knocking out remote camera

Biologists discover Ring of Fire creatures have array of deep-sea survival mechanisms

Volcanic views and forgotten graves in Indonesia’s Banda Islands

Insiders’ guide to Indonesia’s Lombok, a worthy ‘new Bali’ with volcanic craters and horse-drawn carts

Volcanoes

Another tsunami could hit Indonesia, experts warn

An aerial view of Anak Krakatoa volcano during an eruption at Sunda strait in South Lampung, Indonesia, December 23, 2018. Photo: Antara Foto via Reuters

A view of damaged buildings in Banten, Indonesia on Sunday, Dec. 23, 2018, after the area was hit by a tsunami on Dec. 22 following an eruption of the Anak Krakatoa volcano. (Dasril Roszandi/NurPhoto/Zuma Press/TNS)

Indonesia: 222 dead, more than 800 injured after Anak Krakatoa sparks ‘volcano tsunami’

Residents sit inside a mosque as they evacuated following high waves and the eruption of Anak Krakatau volcano at Labuan district in Pandeglang regency, Banten province, Indonesia, December 22, 2018, in this photo taken by Antara Foto. Picture taken December 22, 2018. Antara Foto/Muhammad Bagus Khoirunas/ via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS - THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. MANDATORY CREDIT. INDONESIA OUT.

epa07246135 An Indonesian man sits down among the ruins of houses after a tsunami hit Sunda Strait in Anyer, Banten, Indonesia, 23 December 2018. According to the Indonesian National Board for Disaster Management (BNPB), at least 43 people dead and 584 others have been injured after a tsunami hit the coastal regions of the Sunda Strait. EPA-EFE/DIAN TRIYULI HANDOKO

epa07246112 A handout photo made available by the Indonesia's national disaster management (BNPB) shows a ruined car that was rolled over after a tsunami hit Sunda Strait, in Anyer, Banten, Indonesia, 23 December 2018. According to BNPB, at least 43 people dead and 584 others have been injured. EPA-EFE/BNPB / HANDOUT HANDOUT EDITORIAL USE ONLY/NO SALES

Indonesia’s disaster management agency said the possible cause of the tsunami were undersea landslides after ‘Anak Krakatoa’ volcano erupted. File photo: Reuters

Shocking moment tsunami rips through stage as band Seventeen performs at Indonesian beach resort

The band Seventeen moments before a large wave crashed into the rear of the beachside stage on which they were performing. Photo: Twitter

News

Asia

Southeast Asia

Experts warn the likelihood of further tsunami in the Sunda Strait will remain high while the volcano is going through its current active phase
At least 222 people are dead and more than 800 injured after the tsunami struck on Saturday


Experts warn the likelihood of further tsunami in the Sunda Strait will remain high while the volcano is going through its current active phase.


Natural disasters

Indonesia