Days after a powerful earthquake and tsunami struck central Indonesia's Sulawesi island, residents and rescuers are still trying to cope with the humanitarian crisis.

The official death toll increased on Thursday to 1,424, with thousands injured and more than 70,000 displaced from their homes.

Aid was slowly making its way into areas devastated by the twin disasters. One neighborhood's residents clapped, cheered and high-fived in their excitement at seeing a stopped truck laden with supplies.

The UN humanitarian office said “needs are vast,” with people urgently requiring shelter, clean water, food, fuel and emergency medical care.

Indonesia sits along the Pacific “Ring of Fire”, the world's most tectonically active region, and its 260 million people are vulnerable to earthquakes, tsunamis and volcanic eruptions.