United News of Bangladesh

The death toll from the earthquake that shook the Indonesian island of Java leapt to 252 on Tuesday as more bodies were found beneath collapsed buildings. The Cianjur regional disaster mitigation agency said on its Instagram site that the number of dead increased from 162 reported the night before. Another 31 people remain missing and hundreds were injured. The city of Cianjur, south of Jakarta, was near the epicenter of the 5.6 magnitude earthquake that hit Monday afternoon. The temblor sent terrified residents fleeing into the streets, some covered in blood and debris, and caused buildings around the rural area to collapse. One woman told The Associated Press that when the earthquake hit, her home in Cianjur started “shaking like it was dancing.” “I was crying and immediately grabbed my husband and children,” said the woman, who gave her name only as Partinem. The house collapsed shortly after she escaped with her family. “If I didn't pull them out we might have also been victims,” she said, gazing over the pile of concrete and timber rubble. In addition to those killed, authorities reported more than 300 people were seriously hurt and at least 600 more suffered minor injuries.

The highest volcano on Indonesia’s most densely populated island of Java spewed thick columns of ash, searing gas and lava down its slopes in a sudden eruption triggered by heavy rains on Saturday. At least one villager died from burns and dozens were hospitalized. Mount Semeru’s eruption in Lumajang district in East Java province left several villages blanketed with falling ash. A thunderstorm and days of rain, which had eroded and finally collapsed the lava dome atop the 3,676-meter (12,060-foot) Semeru, triggered an eruption, said Eko Budi Lelono, who heads the geological survey center. He said flows of searing gas and lava traveled up to 800 meters (2,624 feet) to a nearby river at least twice on Saturday. People were advised to stay 5 kilometers (3.1 miles) from the crater’s mouth, the agency said. “Thick columns of ash have turned several villages to darkness,” said Lumajang district head Thoriqul Haq. Several hundred people were moved to temporary shelters or left for other safe areas, he said, adding that power blackout hampered the evacuation. The debris and lava mixed with the rainfall formed thick mud that destroyed the main bridge connecting Lumajang and the neighboring district of Malang, as well as a smaller bridge, Haq said. Despite an increase in activity since Wednesday, Semeru’s alert status has remained at the third highest of four levels since it began erupting last year, and Indonesia’s Volcanology Center for Geological Hazard Mitigation did not raise it this week, Lelono said. READ: Hawaii's Kilauea volcano erupts, lava fountains form in park One man died from severe burns, and 41 others were hospitalized with burn injuries, said Indah Masdar, the deputy district head. She said two villagers were reported missing and several sand miners were trapped in isolated areas along the village river. Entire houses in Curah Kobokan village were damaged by volcanic debris, Masdar said. Television reports showed people screaming and running under a huge ash cloud, their faces wet from rain mixed with volcanic dust. The last time Semeru erupted in January, there were no casualties. READ: Visit Boga Lake, Bandarban: Natural pool from fairy tales or sleeping volcano Indonesia, an archipelago of more than 270 million people, is prone to earthquakes and volcanic activity because it sits along the Pacific “Ring of Fire,” a horseshoe-shaped series of fault lines.

A strong earthquake killed at least seven people, injured 12 others and damaged more than 300 buildings on Indonesia’s main island of Java and shook the tourist hotspot of Bali, officials said Saturday. No tsunami warnings were posted. The U.S. Geological Survey said the magnitude 6.0 quake struck off the island’s southern coast at 2:00 p.m. local time (0700 GMT). It was centered 45 kilometers (28 miles) south of Sumberpucung town of Malang District in East Java province, at a depth of 82 kilometers (51 miles). Rahmat Triyono, the head of Indonesia’s earthquake and tsunami center, said in a statement the undersea tremblor did not have the potential to cause a tsunami. Still, he urged people to stay away from slopes of soil or rocks that have the potential for landslides. Also read: Indonesia landslides death toll rises to 126, dozens missing This was the second deadly disaster to hit Indonesia this week, after a severe downpour on Sunday triggered by Tropical Cyclone Seroja killed at least 174 people and left 48 still missing while damaging thousands of houses. Some victims were buried in either mudslides or solidified lava from a volcanic eruption in November, while others were swept away by flash flooding. Saturday’s quake caused falling rocks to kill a woman on a motorcycle and badly injured her husband in East Java’s Lumajang district, said Raditya Jati, spokesperson for the National Disaster Mitigation Agency. Also read: Bangladesh mourns loss of lives due to flash floods in Indonesia, Timor-Leste He said dozens of homes were damaged across the district, and rescuers had retrieved two bodies from under the rubble in Kali Uling village. Two people were also confirmed killed in an area bordering Lumajang and Malang districts, while one person found dead under rubble in Malang. Television reports showed people running in panic from malls and buildings in several cities in East Java province. Indonesia’s search and rescue agency released videos and photos of damaged houses and buildings, including a ceiling at a hospital in Blitar, a city neighboring Malang. Authorities were still collecting information about the full scale of casualties and damage in the affected areas. Also read: Indonesia landslides, floods kill 55 people; dozens missing Indonesia, a vast archipelago of 270 million people, is frequently struck by earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and tsunamis because of its location on the “Ring of Fire,” an arc of volcanoes and fault lines in the Pacific Basin. In January, a magnitude 6.2 earthquake killed at least 105 people and injured nearly 6,500, while more than 92,000 displaced, after striking Mamuju and Majene districts in West Sulawesi province.