PALU: For the villagers of Balaroa, the events of Sept 28 will forever be etched into their memories.
That was the day when the earth trembled, rose about five metres and landed with a mighty crash, bringing down with it more than a thousand homes as well as its occupants.
Thick mud then streamed out from the earth before fires broke out, destroying the village which had 1,747 houses.
Hundreds of villagers met their end, either trapped in the debris or burnt alive in the earthquake.
One of the survivors, Jaufan Saib, 45, said more than 700 villagers perished. Thousands more are still missing, believed to be buried under the sea of debris.
He said the 7.4-magnitude quake struck just after the call of the azan at Maghrib, with the ground shaking violently.
“Houses were literally lifted from the ground and tossed. It was like being in a grinder. It was terrifying.
“I was fortunate that my house was located by a hillside and was only subjected to tremors. I clung on to a pillar and could only watch as the village below crumbled completely,” he said.
He said some of his neighbours who survived ran towards his house for cover.
“It became pitch black for awhile as the tremors cut off the electricity supply. However, we soon had light as fires began breaking out in the village.
“I couldn’t do anything but watch in horror as screams and cries for help came from everywhere,” he said.
He said they only began looking for victims the next morning.
“So far, we’ve found around 700 bodies in the village. The bodies were retrieved either by family members or by the rescue teams using excavators.”
Meanwhile, another resident, Alex Budianto, 45, said the quake also destroyed the local mosque, Masjid Perunas.
He said the mosque, which could fit around 1,000 people, shifted around 300-metres due to the tremors before it eventually caved in.
“It’s been six days since the tragedy and we are still pulling out bodies from the debris.
“Yesterday we found 12 bodies, all decomposed. I’m not sure about the fate of the others but I am certain that this giant grave will still be crowded by survivors seeking to find their missing loved ones,” he said.
