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PALU, Indonesia – Munif Umayar, survivor of the earthquake and tsunami that devastated the city of Palu, began a painstaking search on Wednesday to find her home in the ruins of the Balaroa neighborhood. After a long hunt and difficult searches, he finally found him – at least 150 meters from where he thought he was living.
That was the power of the earthquake, turning the ground into jelly in a murderous whirlwind that eradicated landmarks and sent buildings flowing to the side even as they were sucked into the rubble.
"I had to dig hard to know that it was my home," said Mr. Munif, a 50-year-old businessman. "When I found it, I put a flag on it, as a sign." He fears his brother is stuck inside.
Balaroa is a collection of middle class housing in Palu, and it is at the center of the most severe damage caused by the earthquake that struck Indonesia on Friday. In the midst of a disaster that has killed both water and land over a greater expanse of Sulawesi Island – the official toll has risen to at least 1 407 dead Wednesday – Balaroa suffered almost no damage from the tsunami that followed.
Instead, the area was devastated when the earthquake caused a phenomenon known as liquefaction, undermining and destroying at least 1,747 homes in this part of the city alone. Balaroa is now a vast wasteland of debris. The roofs are all that remains of many houses. The minaret of a mosque, leaning precariously, is one of the few structures still standing.
In Palu and the surrounding areas, many people are still missing. Officials estimated the number of missing at 113, but it was only those reported.
The tsunami swept through countless people, especially the third and final wave of more than 20 feet in some places. And we think that many bodies are still buried under rubble in places like Balaroa. The earthquake occurred at 18:02. local time, an hour when many would have been home.
After days of improvised efforts, heavy equipment had to move Wednesday in the city, used by military crews to help unearth the bodies and clear the roads.
The inhabitants were aware of the bodies, because of the smell. As crews dug the ground in a corner of Balaroa, a woman's arm became visible, then her head. Pushing back the reinforcing bars and concrete, the workers found more: a small child, holding her in her last moments.
In the devastated area, the demolished buildings were covered with layers of corrugated iron roofing. Looped rods and electrical pylons that have protruded. Cars and vehicles stuck at unlikely angles, many of them without fuel caps – probably because scavengers have recovered fuel.
The Petobo district, which like Balaroa was built on loose soil in a low area, was also demolished by liquefaction. At least 744 houses were destroyed.
A total of 4,413 buildings collapsed in Palu and 773 in the neighboring city of Donggala, said Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, spokesman for the Indonesian Disaster Management Agency.
Recovery efforts intensified on Wednesday as more and more goods are available and traders feel safe enough to reopen small stores and market stalls.
For many years, the emphasis on elementary survival seemed to be moving in the direction of efforts to restore a semblance of normal life in a ruined city.
Assistance was also beginning to arrive, particularly from Singapore, Japan, South Korea and Great Britain.
Outside Palu, along the main road through Donggala district, houses on the sea side were destroyed by the tsunami and houses in the interior were destroyed by the earthquake.
Some residents were sitting in front of the remains of their homes as goats wandered nearby. Others have asked for donations along the way, including a woman wearing a hijab who was carrying her young son in an arm and a box with instant noodles and drinking water in it. other.
Residents complained that the aid was not distributed equitably, much of it going to Palu instead of the outlying areas.
In the Baladonda sub-district, south of Donggala, young men aggressively demanded "donations" to passing motorists. A driver handed a box of instant noodles. The next spat a box of drinking water. Others have gone on to donate money.
Back in Balaroa, Mr. Munif and other survivors found that their neighborhood was unrecognizable.
Many were looking for missing parents. Mr. Munif is concerned that his brother will be stuck in the house when the earthquake occurred.
At once sad and angry, some friends hugged and tried to give themselves the strength to continue.
Hardrah, 44, who, like many Indonesians, only uses one name, came looking for her son's graduation documents but only found ruins.
She was able to locate her house, but she had only one wall left.
Hardrah said she was at home when the earthquake hit, but she does not really know how she managed to escape.
"When all was over, I only saw the ruins and the houses collapse on the ground," she said. "I'm always scared."
Fira Abdurachman and Adam Dean were reported to Palu and Richard C. Paddock in Mamuju, Indonesia. Muktita Suhartono contributed to the reports of Donggala and Restidia Putri from Jakarta.
