Indonesian Earthquake Damage

We might grieve for the fate of the earthquake survivors in Indonesia, but it comes as no surprise for anyone who knew that Indonesia lies on the Pacific "Ring of Fire". The term is not coined from a circus, and definitely, the Indonesians are far from experiencing the fun in a circus. The Pacific Ring of Fire is where most of the earth's seismic activities originate. About 90% of earthquakes occur within the ring of fire, and so do volcanic eruptions.

Indonesia has been shaken by hundreds of earthquakes, but for the purpose of this article, we'll tackle the most severe tremors that caused so much Indonesian earthquake damages.

Tuesday, March 29, 2005
At 2:10am EST, Indonesia was awakened by an 8.7 magnitude quake whose origin was plotted off the coast of northern Sumatra. Indonesian earthquake damage estimates by the government of Indonesia puts the death toll to about 676 and 25,335 injured individuals.

Indonesian earthquake damage estimates as a result of the March 29 tremor affected roads and airfields that made it difficult to transport relief items to some vastly damaged areas, the collapse of every fourth building in Jakarta, countless numbers of dead bodies sprawled on the streets and underneath debris, destroyed part of the sewage system resulting to 80% of the drinking water unsafe.

Moreover, Indonesian earthquake damages included electricity services due to fallen electric posts. Whilst there is a great need for hospitals during these circumstances, hospitals were also among the Indonesian earthquake damages that affected hospital operations and functions, in addition to a scarcity of medical supplies.

A strong aftershock with a 6.8 magnitude shook Padang, the provincial capital of West Sumatra. Indonesian earthquake damages reports included several numbers of houses and schools. In other sub-regions, about 40 percent of houses were uninhabitable.

Saturday, May 27, 2006
Java, the biggest island of Indonesia, was struck with a 6.3 magnitude earthquake. Indonesian earthquake damages in affected areas were reported to be between 60 to 80 percent of the buildings destroyed. This number includes government buildings, homes, hospitals, schools, and railway stations. The Indonesian earthquake damages in Yogyakarta was described as so extensive that it was difficult to figure the demarcation line of each household's property.

Indonesian earthquake damage as a result of the said quake included nearly 6,000 deaths, and 38,000 injuries. More than 200,000 houses were completely destroyed or partly damaged. Children went to so much stress during the first few weeks after the May 27 earthquake. Schools had to be temporarily stopped in some areas since 1,474 school buildings were among the Indonesian earthquake damages.