At least two people have been killed following a magnitude 6.5 earthquake on Indonesia’s main island of Java, an official said yesterday.
The quake struck at a depth of 91km just outside the coastal town of Cipatujah on Java late on Friday, the US Geological Survey said.
The tremor was felt across the island, including in Jakarta, about 300km from the epicenter.
Photo: AP
A 62-year-old man in Ciamis and an 80-year-old woman in Pekalongan city were killed when the buildings they were in collapsed, National Agency for Disaster Management spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho said.
“Several hospitals in several areas have also been damaged and patients had to be evacuated,” Nugroho said.
A hospital in Banyumas suffered damaged ceilings, cracked walls and leaks to oxygen pipelines, forcing about 70 patients to be moved to temporary shelters.
At least 100 houses were damaged across West Java and Central Java provinces, the agency said.
The agency was still evaluating the effects of the disaster and urged people to be cautious.
Jakarta resident Web Warouw, 50, was on the 18th floor of a building in the capital when the quake struck just before midnight.
“Suddenly, we felt dizzy... We then realized it was a quake and immediately ran downstairs,” Warouw said.
Indonesia experiences frequent seismic and volcanic activity due to its positioning on the Pacific “Ring of Fire,” where tectonic plates collide.
About 170,000 lives were lost in December 2004, when a magnitude 9.1 quake and tsunami struck Aceh, which also hit coastal areas as far away as Somalia.
An earthquake struck the nation’s western Aceh Province again in December last year, killing more than 100 people, injuring many more and leaving tens of thousands homeless.
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