Scientists Surprised by Power of Indonesia Tsunami
Photos From the Deadly Earthquake and Tsunami in Indonesia
On September 28, a magnitude 7.5 earthquake struck Indonesia’s Sulawesi island, near the city of Palu, also triggering a localized tsunami, which swept across coastal Palu and the surrounding area. The death toll has now been raised to 832, but authorities have warned they fear it could climb higher, as they begin to reach inaccessible areas. The quake and tsunami wiped out or damaged many roads and bridges, making rescue and evacuation difficult, and several towns remained cut off as of Sunday…
Scientists Surprised by Power of Indonesia Tsunami
The high casualty toll may also reflect Indonesia’s lack of advanced systems for tsunami detection and warning, tsunami experts said. (Image: By Derek Watkins and Bedel Saget | Source: U.S. Geological Survey ShakeMap)
Scientists expressed surprise at the size of the tsunami that devastated the Indonesian city of Palu on Friday, saying an earthquake like the one that preceded it would not necessarily spawn such destructive waves. “We expected it might cause a tsunami, just not one that big,” said Jason Patton, a geophysicist who works for a consulting firm, Temblor, and teaches at Humboldt State University in California.
But he added, “When events like this happen, we are more likely to discover things that we haven’t observed before.”…
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