Twenty years ago the devastating Boxing Day Tsunami swept across Asia, causing death and destruction. And scientists are warning that the next big quake is overdue. DW travels to a village in Banten province that's at the core of one potential impact zone.
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00:00Many of Java's 150 million inhabitants live right by the ocean and it comes
00:08with an ever-present danger. Just 200 kilometers beneath this coastline one of
00:13the earth's tectonic plates is slowly pushing underneath another creating huge
00:19pressure that one day will trigger a so-called mega thrust earthquake. Anis
00:25leaves with his family in Banten province which is right in the danger
00:28zone. He fears his community is unprepared for the next big tremor.
00:37We're in one of the villages closest to the southern Java mega thrust zone. If you
00:42look around you'll see that these houses right by the beach aren't built to
00:45withstand major earthquakes or tsunamis. With 21 villages in this area we're
00:51extremely vulnerable. There's reason to worry. 20 years after a
00:58devastating earthquake and tsunami struck Indonesia's Aceh province
01:02scientists in the capital are warning that serious mega thrusts are overdue in
01:07southwestern Indonesia. One of their simulations shows Anis's village in
01:12Banten province at the core of one impact zone. There are two places that
01:21have been devoid of major seismic activity. The southern Sunda Strait
01:25under Banten province and the Mentawai Island off of the coast of Sumatra. Both
01:31haven't seen a strong earthquake in more than 200 years. That's too long. The
01:36longer there's no activity the stronger the next earthquake will be. For the past
01:42five years the agency has deployed over 300 new seismic sensors across the
01:47country to monitor earthquake activity in real time. In urban areas like Jakarta
01:53earthquake drills are held to prepare the population.
02:03In this mega thrust simulation I learned how to evacuate safely and stay calm.
02:10I agree it's important but I panicked when it started. Back in Banten Anis
02:20wants to see regular earthquake drills too and he's taking the task into his
02:24own hands. In 2016 using his own time and money he founded the South Lebak
02:29mitigation group which teaches the local community how to react in the event of
02:34an earthquake. He's also built a disaster command center with the help of private
02:40donors. Although his initiative has started to gain recognition and attract
02:45funding Anis would like to see more official support. Currently we don't see
02:55much government presence here although collaboration would be beneficial but we
03:00won't stop. We must strive for the safety of our community against the threats
03:05posed by mega thrusts. For now Anis is relying on his own resources. His team's
03:14emergency plan includes the training of local motorcycle taxi drivers to
03:19assisting the evacuations of coastal communities. These drivers know the best
03:25routes to higher ground and could play a crucial role in saving lives when the
03:30next big tremor comes.