On 28th September 2018, in the evening hours, Central Sulawesi of Indonesia was struck by the earthquake of 7.7 magnitude RS. The earthquake caused massive destruction in the City of Palu, and triggered a strong tsunami, as well as mudslides and phenomenon called ‘soil liquefaction’ across City of Palu, Sigu and in costal areas of Dongala. The Palu disaster follows the devastating earthquake that had hit the island of Lombok three months earlier. This gallery shows images of the destruction and humanitarian response to both of the crises (Palu and Lombok).

At the time of writing, the official figures suggest that at least 5,000 lost their lives and thousands people got injured (Sulawesi). However, it is clear that the number of people will increase dramatically, as more excavations are done. We all fear that the death toll could exceed 20,000 people.

The calamities caused apocalyptic destruction with ten of thousands houses being turned into rubble. Roads, electricity, water networks, hospitals, schools, shops, hotels are all destroyed or damaged.

The disaster has brought many people within Indonesia and some from outside of the country joining hands to help those surviving the disaster. But what is the most impressive is the solidarity and self-support of the families that survived themselves. People just do whatever they can to help one another - thus trying to cope with the loss of their loved ones or their possessions.

This gallery of pictures is a tribute to victims and survivors of this terrible tragedy, and to those doing whatever they can to help. You can view pictures, by clicking this link.