
Anthonius Gunawan Agung, 21 sacrificed himself to save hundreds of lives on Friday

A young air traffic controller who remained behind during an earthquake to make sure a plane carrying hundreds of passengers took off safely has been hailed a hero.

Anthonius Gunawan Agung, 21, was working at Mutiara SIS Al-Jufrie Airport in Palu on the central Indonesian island of Sulawesi on Friday night, when a 6.1 magnitude tremor hit, followed by a 7.5-magnitude quake.

His actions unquestionably saved the lives of dozens, but at least 384 people have been killed in a resulting tsunami and another 500 injured after waves up to 20ft tall swept over the Indonesia island - as fears mount the death toll could rise into the thousands.

The tremors left deep fissures in the runway just as Batik Air flight 6321 was preparing to take off with hundreds of people on-board.

His colleagues ran for their lives when the control tower began to sway as the ground underneath it split.

Agung alone remained behind in the crumbling tower until he was certain he had done enough guide the pilots of the plane safely into the air.

His bravery could potentially have saved the lives of all the passengers and crew on board the plane, as the city was later devastated later by a tsunami caused by the earthquake.

The building began to shake soon after the plane departed and, fearing he would be trapped beneath the debris if the tower collapsed around him, Agung jumped from a fourth floor window.

He was rushed to hospital having suffered internal injuries and a broken leg.

A helicopter was called to take him to a different hospital for specialist care, and he was due to be picked up again from the airport on Saturday morning.

However, he died before the helicopter arrived.

AirNav Indonesia spokesman Yohannes Sirait said Agung's decision cost him his life, but he may have saved hundreds of others.

An aerial image of Mutiara Sis Al Jufri Airport in Palu, central Sulawesi, where the 21-year-old air traffic control hero Anthonius Gunawan Agung was working on Friday night

Soldiers carry the body of Anthonius Gunawan Agung to be transported to the burial. He was just one month away from his 22nd birthday

Soldiers place Agung's body into a car which will transport it to the burial. AirNav bosses also increased his rank by two levels in recognition of his sacrifice

Two earthquakes hit the city of Palu on the central Indonesian island of Sulawesi on Friday, the second was a 7.5 magnitude and left deep cracks in the runway at Mutiara SIS Al-Jufrie Airport

He was given a hero's send-off amid hundreds of tributes on Saturday as soldiers carried his body to be transported to the burial. He was just one month away from his 22nd birthday.

AirNav bosses also increased his rank by two levels in recognition of the sacrifice he made.

The fallout from the earthquake caused a gigantic tsunami on Friday evening which killed almost 400 people and injured 540 more in Palu city alone. Vice President Jusuf Kalla said the death toll could rise to thousands.

Many locals are too afraid to go back indoors and have decided to sleep in the darkness outside following the residual tremors which have been occurring throughout the day.

Other cities known to be closer to to the quake's epicentre are not yet accessible as power and communications have cut out.

After leaping from the fourth floor as the tower swayed and began to collapse, Agung suffered fatal injuries and died before a helicopter could move him to a specialist hospital on Saturday morning

AirNav Indonesia spokesman Yohannes Sirait said Agung's decision cost him his life, but he may have saved hundreds of others.

Search and rescue operations in Palu have also been hampered by a landslide which cut off the city's main highway.

Bodies covered the beaches in Palu on Saturday where a festival to celebrate the city's anniversary was supposed to have taken place the previous evening.

The wall of water which was up to 20ft high struck the city's shoreline at 500mph, leaving thousands homeless as it swept away buildings, cars and infrastructure.

Some people reportedly climbed 18ft trees to escape the tsunami and survived.

Fears are mounting for the the fishing town of Donggala, which was closer to the epicentre of the quake, but which rescuers have not been able to reach. The town of Mamuju was also severely affected but currently impossible to access due to damaged roads and disrupted telecommunications.

Meanhwhile criticisms have been levelled at the counry's geophysics agency for lifting the tsunami warning 34 minutes after it was first issued, which may have led to confusion and exacerbated the death toll.

Relatives are seeking for the body of their love ones at Police hospital backyard after tsunami hit in Palu

Aerial image of the devastation in Palu city in central Sulawesi, Indonesia, caused by two earthquakes. The first was of 6.1 magnitude and hit Indonesia's densely populated region on Friday morning, quickly followed by even fiercer 7.5 magnitude tremors which caused the towering tsunami

Aerial view of the damage to homes and shipping containers on the coast of Palu city. According to Indonesian National Board for Disaster Management (BNPB) the death toll from the Sulawesi earthquake and tsunami has reached 384 but the number might be keep rising

An aerial view of part of the city destroyed by an earthquake and tsunami in Palu, central Sulawesi

Fears are mounting for the the fishing town of Donggala, which was closer to the epicentre of the quake, but which rescuers have not been able to reach.

The number of casualties was no doubt increased by the fact that hundreds of people had descended on Palu's beach for a festival to celebrate the city's anniversary, due to start Friday night.

'When the (tsunami) threat arose yesterday, people were still doing their activities on the beach and did not immediately run and they became victims,' Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, spokesman of Indonesia's disaster mitigation agency BNPB said in news briefing in Jakarta.

The military has started sending in cargo planes with aid from Jakarta and other cities, authorities said, but evacuees still badly need food and other basic necessities.

The city's airport has been reopened only for relief efforts and will remain closed until October 4 for commercial flights. The airport's runway and air traffic control tower were damaged in the quake, authorities said.

President Joko Widodo was scheduled to visit evacuation centres in Palu on Sunday.

The National Disaster Mitigation Agency warned early on of reports showing that 'victims died in the rubble of a collapsed building'.

It is thought thousands of buildings have been damaged, with some entirely swept away or demolished, leaving scores of families still missing among the debris.

Strong aftershocks continued to rock Palu on Saturday morning.

Photographs from the city on the coast of Sulawesi island showed bodies being lined up along the street, some in bags and others with their faces covered with clothes.

Indonesia's meteorological and geophysics agency BMKG issued a tsunami warning after the first quake, but lifted it 34 minutes later.

People in Central Sulawesi and West Sulawesi provinces were told to evacuate to higher ground, though it remains unclear as to whether people remained in their homes because of the contradicting government advice.

The agency faced criticism on Saturday with many questioning if the tsunami warning was lifted too soon.

Pau city is built around a narrow bay that apparently magnified the force of the tsunami waters as they raced into the tight inlet

Residents trying to salvage belongings from their homes which collapsed after an earthquake and tsunami hit Palu on Sulawesi island