• The death toll from Monday’s earthquake on the Indonesian island of Java has risen to 268.
• Rescuers claim that many of those killed and injured were youngsters.
• Aprizal Mulyadi, 14, was in school at the time of the earthquake.

As the death toll rises to 268, rescuers claim that many of those killed and hurt in a significant earthquake on the Indonesian island of Java were youngsters.

When the earthquake struck, Aprizal Mulyadi, 14, was in school. He claims he was trapped because “the room fell and my legs were buried under the rubble.”

He claimed that his companion Zulfikar, who subsequently perished after becoming stuck himself, pulled him to safety.

Officials report that more than 1,000 persons suffered injuries.

The National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) added that 151 persons were remained missing in its most recent reports on Tuesday.

Additionally, it stated that over 58,000 people had sought shelter in various areas across the area, and that 22,000 houses had suffered damage.

On Monday, a hilly area was devastated by a 5.6-magnitude earthquake that resulted in landslides that buried entire villages close to the West Java town of Cianjur.

As a result of collapsed walls and roofs, victims were crushed or imprisoned. Aprizal told the AFP news agency, “It all occurred so fast.

The fact that many of the victims were young individuals was also confirmed by a representative of the National Search and Rescue Agency.

“Most of the casualties are children because at 1pm, they were still at school,” said Henri Alfiandi.

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Dozens of aftershocks occurred as poorly constructed dwellings collapsed as a result of the earthquake, which occurred at a shallow depth of 10 km (six miles).

A family in the village of Cibereum was attempting to recover the body of their 28-year-old eldest son, who had been crushed when the other levels of the house collapsed on him.

Rescuers battled to sort through the debris.

“We have to dig through the concrete of the second floor that crushed the victim. But we have seen the body,” a military official, Sergeant Payakun told the media.

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On Tuesday, President Joko Widodo travelled to the distant disaster area and was photographed with rescue workers.

“My instruction is to priorities evacuating victims that are still trapped under rubble,” he said.

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The rescue operation involves hundreds of police officers and other rescuers. Mr. Jokowi promised impacted communities compensation.

Indonesia, which is located in the Pacific “ring of fire” region of tectonic activity, experiences earthquakes frequently.

With almost 2,000 people lost in an earthquake on the island of Sulawesi in 2018, the nation has a history of severe tremors and tsunamis.

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