Damage from the earthquake that shook Indonesia's Aceh province on
Wednesday is extensive in towns near the epicenter. A market was
leveled, and other buildings reduced to chunks of cement and twisted
rebar.
Crowds form around excavators as rescuers hope to find a miraculous survival story in a landscape of tragedy. The official death toll stood at about 100 on Thursday morning, with a great deal of debris left to sort through and assessment teams just making their way to outlying areas.
The magnitude 6.5 quake damaged mosques and left thousands of people homeless. People affected by the destruction are beginning to receive aid, including water, blankets and tarpaulins, and humanitarian agencies are assessing how much more they will need. Just measuring the extent of the crisis is expected to take about three days.
Here is a selection of photos from Associated Press photographers in the areas hardest hit by the earthquake.
(AP)
Acehnese women survey the damage after an earthquake in Ulhee Glee, Aceh
province, Indonesia, Thursday, Dec. 8, 2016. Thousands of people in the
Indonesian province of Aceh took refuge for the night in mosques and
temporary shelters after a strong earthquake Wednesday killed a large
number of people and destroyed dozens of buildings.
Earthquake survivors sleep on the ground at a temporary shelter in Ulim,
Aceh province, Indonesia, Thursday, Dec. 8, 2016. Thousands of people
in the Indonesian province of Aceh took refuge for the night in mosques
and temporary shelters after a strong earthquake on Wednesday killed a
large number of people and destroyed dozens of buildings.
Earthquake survivors sleep on the ground outside a mosque turned into a
temporary shelter in Ulim, Aceh province, Indonesia, Thursday, Dec. 8,
2016. Thousands of people in the Indonesian province of Aceh took refuge
for the night in mosques and temporary shelters after a strong
earthquake on Wednesday killed a large number of people and destroyed
dozens of buildings.
Men inspect a collapsed mosque after an earthquake in Pidie Jaya, Aceh
province, Indonesia, Wednesday, Dec. 7, 2016. A strong undersea
earthquake rocked Indonesia's Aceh province early on Wednesday, killing a
number of people and causing dozens of buildings to collapse.
Earthquake survivors spend a night at a temporary shelter in Ulim, Aceh
province, Indonesia, Thursday, Dec. 8, 2016. Thousands of people in the
Indonesian province of Aceh took refuge for the night in mosques and
temporary shelters after a strong earthquake on Wednesday killed a large
number of people and destroyed dozens of buildings.
Women are reflected in a motorbike's mirror as they access the damaged
building after an earthquake in Pidie Jaya, Aceh province, Indonesia,
Wednesday, Dec. 7, 2016. A strong undersea earthquake rocked Indonesia's
Aceh province early on Wednesday, killing a number of people and
causing dozens of buildings to collapse.
Hospital workers and family members carry a woman injured in an
earthquake at a hospital in Pidie, Aceh province, Indonesia, Wednesday,
Dec. 7, 2016. A strong undersea earthquake rocked Indonesia's Aceh
province early on Wednesday, killing a number of people and causing
dozens of buildings to collapse.
Rescuers use excavators to search for victims under the rubble of
collapsed buildings after an earthquake in Pidie Jaya, Aceh province,
Indonesia, Wednesday, Dec. 7, 2016. A strong earthquake rocked
Indonesia's Aceh province early on Wednesday, killing a large number of
people and sparking a frantic rescue effort in the rubble of dozens of
collapsed and damaged buildings.
Rescuers recover the body of a victim from a collapsed building after an
earthquake in Pidie Jaya, Aceh province, Indonesia, Wednesday, Dec. 7,
2016. A strong earthquake rocked Indonesia's Aceh province early on
Wednesday, killing a large number of people and sparking a frantic
rescue effort in the rubble of dozens of collapsed and damaged
buildings.
