Storm surges destroy states and cities as the weather turns

Indonesia Earthquake:

More than 66,000 homes and near 2,000 lives were obliterated by the 7.5-magnitude earthquake that struck Indonesia on Sept. 28, according to a CNN article. Thousands of civilians were injured and tens of thousands were displaced from their homes.

What were once streets filled with life and color soon turned streets of gravel and destruction, but it wasn’t the earthquake that destroyed the neighborhoods; it was the plethora of soil-filled rivers as a result of the quake that generated a tsunami.

There are still thousands of people believed to be unaccounted for and search operations are being conducted day-in and day-out, however, they are scheduled to end on Thurs, Oct. 11 and those unaccounted for will be considered officially dead or missing.

Discussions are commencing with religious authorities and surviving family and community members as to whether some areas of destruction in the cities of Palu could be converted to mass graves for victims. These mass graves would include monuments devoted to remembering the victims.

Willem Rampangilei, head of the National Board for Disaster Management, said life is beginning to return to normal in some areas briefly affected by the disaster. Many schools have been knocked down, but classes will be resumed as soon as a possible location is determined.  

Hurricane Michael:

Hurricane Michael downgraded to a tropical storm after it made its way to shore on Wednesday as a Category 4 storm. As of Friday, Oct 15, the death toll was 16 and authorities expect the number to rise as they uncover more debris and destruction as they search further inland for survivors.

Michael was named the most powerful storm to hit the continental in over 50 years. Homes along the coast were immensely destroyed to the point where concrete slabs and wooden panels are all what is left.  

Nearly 1 million people were and still are without power in areas in Florida up to Virginia and major destruction to the power lines are calling for basic necessities such as heat and electricity to be scarce along Florida’s Panhandle.

Panama City, Florida got the worst of the storm as some of the houses and businesses are unrecognizable, according to a CBS News article.