False alarms of more tsunamis wreak havoc on Indonesia - New York Post

False rumors about another imminent tsunami caused chaos Tuesday in Indonesian villages traumatized by the series of giant waves that hit without warning over the weekend, killing at least 429 people.

Hundreds of panicked residents, many sobbing and clutching small children, fled the village of Sumber Jaya as a rumor spread that another tsunami was about to smash into the already-shattered community.

“Water is coming! Water is coming!” people screamed as they ran to higher ground while reciting verses from the Koran and emergency messages blared over mosque speakers.

A similar frenzy over a false alarm also broke out in the tsunami-stricken area of Tanjung Lesung a couple of hours away.

The rising water turned out to be just a regular tidal surge. Still, a high-tide warning is in effect for the region until Wednesday.

Unlike other tsunamis that have hit the disaster-prone nation after large earthquakes, Saturday’s waves smashed without warning, devastating communities on the shores of the Sunda Strait.

Across the nation of islands, Christmas celebrations were replaced with somber prayers.

“This is an unusual situation because we have a very bad disaster that killed hundreds of our sisters and brothers in Banten,” Pastor Markus Taekz said his Rahmat Pentecostal Church in the hard-hit area of Carita.

“So our celebration is full of grief.”

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