Photo credit, Antara Foto.

The death toll from the volcano-triggered tsunami which hit Anak Krakatau in Indonesia on Saturday has reached 281 people.

The tsunami, which hit the area around 9:30 pm local time when many residents and visitors were relaxing near the beach on the islands of Java and Sumatra, on either side of the Sunda Strait injured 1,016 persons.

Fifty-seven persons, including members of the rock band, Seventeen who were filmed on stage when the tsunami hit are still missing with an estimated 11,687 persons already displaced.

More than 600 homes and about 400 boats and ships were damaged by the tsunami. This is even as Indonesian rescuers are scrambling with diggers and other heavy equipment and even their bare hands to free survivors from the rubble.

 Based on satellite images, the emerging scientific consensus seems to be that the collapse of a portion of the volcanic eruption triggered an underwater landslide which pushed the wall of water towards the shore..

The Indonesian president, Joko Widodo, who has been flown to the disaster zone has been busy comforting survivors at hospitals located in Pandeglang, the worst hit area which recorded 207 deaths and 755 injured persons. The other affected districts are Serang, South Lampung, Tanggamus and Pesawaran

“We request prayers from all over the country so that we are all given salvation, patience and strength,” Widodo said.

This is the second major tsunami that Indonesia has had to deal with in the past few months. In late September, an earthquake triggered a huge tsunami that devastated the city of Palu, killing around 2,000 people.