The death toll from the powerful earthquake that devastated the Indonesian island of Sumatra has risen to an estimated 1,000 as rescuers search through collapsed buildings for survivors.

The death toll has risen steadily. Officials put it at 330 Tuesday. But Sumatra Governor Rizal Nurdin estimated the figure had risen to 1,000 on Wednesday. Government officials have said it could climb as high as 2,000.

Bodies were still being found in the ruins of houses and shops early Wednesday and laid out in front of churches and mosques.

Most of the deaths from Monday night's 8.7-magnitude earthquake in the Indian Ocean were on the Sumatran island of Nias, 120 kilometers south of the epicenter.