Jakarta
A series of strong earthquakes rattled the western coast of
Indonesia's Sumatra island Tuesday, destroying dozens of houses,
officials said.
The latest quake, measuring 7.0 on the Richter scale, struck the
western coast of Sumatra at 4:02 a.m. local time (2102 GMT Monday),
with its epicentre 171 km southwest of Painan, west Sumatra, and 27
km beneath the seabed. A 6.3-magnitude quake hit the region three
hours earlier.
Brief tsunami warnings were issued following the quakes, but were
lifted soon after when no tidal waves materialized. The warnings
caused thousands of frightened residents to run out of their houses.
An official at West Sumatra's disaster management centre said at
least 20 houses and a school building collapsed following the
quakes. One person was reportedly injured.
The official said many residents remained on high ground for fear of
a possible tsunami.
"They are still scared to return home, fearing a quake will happen
again," she said.
The quake also caused panic among residents of various towns in West
Sumatra and Bengkulu provinces, Elshinta radio reported.
Monday afternoon, a quake registering 7.2 on the Richter scale
jolted the western coast of Sumatra, prompting authorities to issue
a tsunami warning, and late Sunday a 6.5-magnitude earthquake hit
Bengkulu and West Sumatra.
On Sep 12, Bengkulu and West Suamtra provinces were hit by an
8.4-magnitude quake that killed more than 20 people, damaging or
destroying thousands of homes and other buildings.
Indonesia, the world's largest archipelago nation, is prone to
earthquakes, sitting along the Pacific Ring of Fire, where
continental plates collide and earthquakes and volcanic eruptions
are frequent.
ON Wednesday, a 7.5-magnitude quake rocked Indonesia's Aceh province
at the tip of Sumatra, killing three people and seriously injuring
25 on remote Simeulue island.
In December 2004, a massive 9.0-magnitude earthquake triggered a
tsunami that struck nine Asian nations and killed 177,000 people in
Indonesia's Aceh province alone.
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