Skip to content

ASSIST NEWS

Aid to Special Saints in Strategic Times

Primary Menu
  • Dan Wooding, Founder
  • Our Writers
  • Story Archive
  • Contact Us
  • Log In
Live
  • Home
  • ANS Feature
  • Indonesia: Church carried a mile, swallowed up after ground liquified
  • ANS Feature

Indonesia: Church carried a mile, swallowed up after ground liquified

Mark Ellis October 9, 2018 2 min read

Overhead view of church

The powerful 7.5-magnitude earthquake that struck Indonesia set off a rare seismic process called liquefaction that

Overhead view of church

destroyed a church holding a Bible camp, killing at least 34 young people.

The camp was held at Gereja GPID Patmos Church in Jono Oge, located about six miles south of Palu. Every year as many as 100 children gather for an annual catechism organized by the Protestant community in Palu. This year they chose the small village of Jone Oge for the Bible camp.

Dozens of children were trapped on the ground floor. The catastrophe worsened when the seismic movement caused liquefaction of the soil and the entire area was transformed into a sea of ​​mud.

When the quake struck, some students were sharing dinner in the auditorium. “The building fell on top of most,” Lidya Mauren, 27, told Minuto Mercedes. His 17-year-old sister perished in the calamity.

“The land began moving, and it was like the church was swallowed up,” Douglas Simamora, 16, told the Wall Street Journal (WSJ).

Simamora, one of the few survivors, was playing soccer on a break from the Bible camp outside the Jono Oge Protestant Church. As the quake intensified, the solid ground beneath his feet began to liquefy.

He and his friends ran to a grouping of trees where the ground seemed solid, while buildings and homes slipped past and disappeared. They watched as the narrow A-frame Protestant church was carried away.

Then their tiny island dislodged and began floating amidst the river of muddy debris. “I told God, if this is the end, I am ready to die.”

His island floated along like Noah’s Ark, coming to rest a mile away from where the church once stood.

The church also floated for a mile and came to rest face up, with most of the structure broken apart or swallowed beneath the surface.

MORE

Mark Ellis

Mark Ellis

Mark Ellis worked in the commercial real estate industry before he answered a call into full-time Christian ministry. For 9 years, he served as Asst. Pastor at Church by the Sea in Laguna Beach. He began writing about the church around the world in 1999 with the assistance of Dan Wooding of ASSIST News. After a mission trip to the southern Philippines in 2004, God gave him the vision for the God Reports website, which supports and encourages Christian Missions. He also serves on the boards of Morning Star News and the Birtcher Family Foundation.

See author's posts

Tags: Gereja GPID Patmos Church Jono Oge Indonesia church earthquake Jono Oge church carried a mile

Continue Reading

Previous: Homeless children transformed by Ukrainian Family
Next: Lumenlife Reports Possible Secret Deal for Pastor Andrew Brunson

Related Stories

‘Jesus Revolution’ movie: ’60s turmoil, radical responses
4 min read
  • ANS Feature
  • ANS Reports
  • Culture
  • Inspirational

‘Jesus Revolution’ movie: ’60s turmoil, radical responses

February 18, 2023
Remembering Dr. Russell P. Spittler
4 min read
  • ANS Feature

Remembering Dr. Russell P. Spittler

February 13, 2023
There’s Hope for the Brokenhearted brokenhearted
3 min read
  • ANS Feature
  • Inspirational

There’s Hope for the Brokenhearted

February 10, 2023
Support Assist News

Introduction To Assist News

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=9&v=mbFxZL-bL7g

Search

Support Assist News
  • Dan Wooding, Founder
  • Our Writers
  • Story Archive
  • Contact Us
  • Log In
Copyright ASSIST NEWS © All rights reserved. | MoreNews by AF themes.

logo

Get Updates in Your Inbox