(CNN) Bapu Suwarna had just wrapped up a work meeting at a hotel in Indonesia's Banten province when he heard a sound like thunder and saw people running and screaming, "Tsunami! Waves! Waves!" He'd soon find himself separated from his family.

He recalled his story days after Saturday's tsunami hit the Sunda Strait between the islands of Java and Sumatra, killing at least 429 people, according to the latest tally.

The wave, which officials say reached as high as 5 meters (16 feet) in some areas, arrived with virtually no warning and also displaced 16,000 people and injured 1,485 more.

Bapu Suwarna, left, poses with his wife, Piniarti, and his kids, Naura AS, Aulia Yasmin and Muhammad Raihan, before the tsunami hit.

Officials said 154 people are missing, as of Tuesday, and they worry the numbers of dead, hurt and missing could rise as the rescue effort expands and the threat of more tsunamis looms.

According to Hendra Sudirman, the chief of Jakarta's search and rescue agency, rescuers have so far found 34 bodies at the Mutiara Carita resort on the Java coast that hosted Bapu's work meeting. The registered guests from the resort have been evacuated, but many caretakers of private cottages remain missing, the rescue chief said, leaving open the possibility of finding more bodies.

'Dad! Dad! Dad!'

Bapu said he first thought the thunderous clamor emanated from a concert near the Mutiara Carita resort, but it wasn't before long he realized it was much more.

"When I stepped out, I saw people running from the waves nearby the pool and dining hall," he said. "I saw that my cottage was dark and flooded with waves. I felt weak."

Photos: In pictures: Latest tsunami hits Indonesia beaches An Indonesian soldier looks at damaged houses and debris in Sumur, Indonesia, on Tuesday, December 25. Hide Caption 1 of 32 Photos: In pictures: Latest tsunami hits Indonesia beaches A woman holding an umbrella walks in the rain among debris after the tsunami in Sumur on Wednesday, December 26. Hide Caption 2 of 32 Photos: In pictures: Latest tsunami hits Indonesia beaches Members of an Indonesian search and rescue team carry an elderly woman on a stretcher at the ferry port after being evacuated from Sebesi Island, in Bakauheni, on Wednesday. Hide Caption 3 of 32 Photos: In pictures: Latest tsunami hits Indonesia beaches A tsunami survivor walks around Sumur on Tuesday. Hide Caption 4 of 32 Photos: In pictures: Latest tsunami hits Indonesia beaches An aerial view of an affected area of Sumur. Hide Caption 5 of 32 Photos: In pictures: Latest tsunami hits Indonesia beaches People clean up a mosque. Hide Caption 6 of 32 Photos: In pictures: Latest tsunami hits Indonesia beaches A man reacts after identifying a relative during a rescue operation at a beach front hotel in Pandeglang on Monday, December 24. Hide Caption 7 of 32 Photos: In pictures: Latest tsunami hits Indonesia beaches Villagers walk through debris in Carita, Banten province, Indonesia, on Monday following the tsunami. Hide Caption 8 of 32 Photos: In pictures: Latest tsunami hits Indonesia beaches A survivor sits on debris as she salvages items from her destroyed house in Sumur, Indonesia. Hide Caption 9 of 32 Photos: In pictures: Latest tsunami hits Indonesia beaches A man stands on debris from a house in Carita, Banten province. Hide Caption 10 of 32 Photos: In pictures: Latest tsunami hits Indonesia beaches Debris covers a promontory at the Villa Stephanie holiday resort in Carita. Hide Caption 11 of 32 Photos: In pictures: Latest tsunami hits Indonesia beaches Tsunami survivors rest at a hospital in Pandeglang, Indonesia, Monday. Doctors are working to help survivors, and rescuers are looking for more victims from a deadly tsunami that smashed into beachside buildings along an Indonesian strait. Hide Caption 12 of 32 Photos: In pictures: Latest tsunami hits Indonesia beaches Villagers search through debris after the tsunami destroyed their houses. Hide Caption 13 of 32 Photos: In pictures: Latest tsunami hits Indonesia beaches Women collect rice from their destroyed houses in Carita. Hide Caption 14 of 32 Photos: In pictures: Latest tsunami hits Indonesia beaches Indonesian soldiers carry the bodies of tsunami victims at a beach resort in Tanjung Lesung, Indonesia, on Monday. Hide Caption 15 of 32 Photos: In pictures: Latest tsunami hits Indonesia beaches Indonesian soldiers peer into an underground space during a search for victims of the tsunami at a resort hotel Monday in Tanjung Lesung, Indonesia. Hide Caption 16 of 32 Photos: In pictures: Latest tsunami hits Indonesia beaches An aerial view of the Anak Krakatau volcano during an eruption in South Lampung, Indonesia, on Sunday, December 23. The tsunami is believed to have been triggered when the volcano, lying in the Sunda Strait between the islands of Java and Sumatra, erupted and set off a series of underwater landslides, according to Indonesia's Meteorology, Climatology and Geological Agency. Hide Caption 17 of 32 Photos: In pictures: Latest tsunami hits Indonesia beaches Rescue team members carry the body of a tsunami victim in Banten, Indonesia, on Sunday. Hide Caption 18 of 32 Photos: In pictures: Latest tsunami hits Indonesia beaches An aerial photo shows damaged buildings in Carita, Indonesia, on Sunday, a day after the area was hit by the tsunami. Hide Caption 19 of 32 Photos: In pictures: Latest tsunami hits Indonesia beaches Residents inspect a house damaged by the tsunami in Carita. Hide Caption 20 of 32 Photos: In pictures: Latest tsunami hits Indonesia beaches Tsunami survivors gather at temporary shelter in Tanjung Lesung, Indonesia, on Sunday. Hide Caption 21 of 32 Photos: In pictures: Latest tsunami hits Indonesia beaches Residents inspect a house damaged by the tsunami in Carita, Indonesia, on Sunday. Hide Caption 22 of 32 Photos: In pictures: Latest tsunami hits Indonesia beaches A man breaks down after identifying his relative among the bodies of tsunami victims in Carita, Indonesia, on Sunday. Hide Caption 23 of 32 Photos: In pictures: Latest tsunami hits Indonesia beaches People search for relatives among the bodies of tsunami victims. Hide Caption 24 of 32 Photos: In pictures: Latest tsunami hits Indonesia beaches A villager walks past vehicles damaged by a tsunami in Carita, Indonesia. Hide Caption 25 of 32 Photos: In pictures: Latest tsunami hits Indonesia beaches A resident walks past buildings damaged by a tsunami in Carita, Indonesia, on Sunday. Hide Caption 26 of 32 Photos: In pictures: Latest tsunami hits Indonesia beaches A man walks amid debris from damaged buildings in Carita, Indonesia. Hide Caption 27 of 32 Photos: In pictures: Latest tsunami hits Indonesia beaches A rescuer takes part in a search for tsunami victims in Carita, Indonesia. Hide Caption 28 of 32 Photos: In pictures: Latest tsunami hits Indonesia beaches Officials look through the wreckage of damaged buildings in Carita, Indonesia. Hide Caption 29 of 32 Photos: In pictures: Latest tsunami hits Indonesia beaches Debris litters a property that was damaged by the tsunami in Indonesia. Hide Caption 30 of 32 Photos: In pictures: Latest tsunami hits Indonesia beaches A damaged vehicle is seen amid wreckage from buildings along Indonesia's Carita beach. Hide Caption 31 of 32 Photos: In pictures: Latest tsunami hits Indonesia beaches Residents evacuate from damaged homes. Hide Caption 32 of 32

Standing in chest-high water, he watched as it reached the roof of his cottage, then, "I saw my car float and the alarms went off."

He and his friends took shelter, but he soon found himself asking, "Why were we waiting here? Our families were over there. Let's pick them up!"

Bapu pushed through the waves, dodging a log and tables floating by. When he got to the cottage, he heard one of his children shout, "Dad! Dad! Dad!" he said. He was shivering from the cold, but that didn't matter much once he found his wife, Piniarti, and three children -- ages, 4, 14, and 18 -- safe, he said.

Lead singer loses bandmates, wife

The 49-year-old father was lucky in that he was reunited with his loved ones. Many Indonesians enjoyed no such fortune. Among them is Riefan Fajarsyah, lead singer of the pop band Seventeen, which was performing at a Tanjung Lesung beach resort when the tsunami crashed onto the stage, collapsing it and carrying off his wife and bandmates.

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Riefan said Sunday that two band members were killed, but his wife, Dylan Sahara, and three other members of Seventeen, he said on Instagram, were missing.

"Today is your birthday, I am wishing that you come home my love," he said in the post, which included an image of him and his wife kissing in Paris.

On Monday, upon learning the three missing musicians were found dead, Riefan posted a tribute, calling them "family forever." On Tuesday, the news got worse for Riefan, when band manager Yulia Dian confirmed the singer's wife had been killed, too.

"She was the best wife God gave me. I couldn't ask for more," he wrote on Instagram.

Rescuers work amid tsunami threat

Tanjung Lesung, a popular tourist spot in Banten province, is one of the more remote areas rescuers still need to search, and it will take hours to reach the area from the Mutiara Carita resort where the bodies were found, said Hendra, the rescue chief. At least 16 people remain missing in the area, he said.

There are 371 search-and-rescue officials working on the coasts that bookend the Sunda Strait, all equipped with life jackets in the event of anther tsunami.

The Anak Krakatau volcano, roughly 40 to 50 kilometers (about 25 to 30 miles) from the Java and Sumatra coastlines, continues to erupt, leaving many in fear that more monster waves could arrive on Indonesia's shores.

The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies in Indonesia has said it expects the death toll to rise, and Doctors Without Borders has said the number of injured will likely go up as well.

On top of the massive human toll, property damage is extensive. An early assessment given to reporters Monday indicates more than 880 homes were destroyed, with 73 hotels, 60 restaurants and 435 boats suffering heavy damage.

It came out of nowhere

Witnesses have said they had no clue the tsunami was coming until seconds before it hit, and Bapu, the survivor at Mutiara Carita, is among many Indonesians pleading for a better early warning system for the archipelago, which is known for tectonic activity and tsunamis.

"From the bottom of my heart, I sincerely request that the government set up an early warning system so people can anticipate an incoming tsunami," he said. "I didn't have much time after the loud sounds were heard. Second, we need a better emergency response procedure."

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Saturday's tsunami was unusual in that no earthquake preceded it, which officials said contributed to the lack of a warning.

According to a conglomeration of agencies, the disaster was the product of multiple triggers: a volcanic eruption causing a 64-hectare (158-acre) chunk of Anak Krakatau to slide off the island volcano and into the ocean during a full moon at high tide.

The Sunda Strait has also experienced a spell of heavy rainfall, the agencies said.

The Indonesia Ministry of Maritime Affairs' sensors "did not sound early warning because they are for tectonic activity not volcanic activity," spokesman Rahmat Djamaluddin said.

As for tsunami warnings, Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, spokesman for the National Disaster Mitigation Agency, provided a list of reasons why the outdated tsunami buoy network hasn't functioned properly in six years.

"Vandalism, limited budget, technical damage caused no tsunami (alerts) at this time," he said on his official Twitter account.

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Despite the devastating December 26, 2004, tsunami that killed hundreds of thousands of people, Indonesia lacks proper equipment to warn of an incoming tsunami.

Officials also blamed the faulty warning system in October when a tsunami killed more than 2,000 people on the western coast of Sulawesi.

President Joko Widodo has ordered the country's Meteorology, Climatology and Geological Agency to purchase detectors to provide early warnings to Indonesians.

As long as the volcano remains active, residents should be vigilant, Sutopo said.