The Age, March 7, 2007
Scores dead as quakes hit beleaguered Indonesia
Two strong earthquakes have hit Indonesia's Sumatra island, killing at least 70
people, flattening buildings and sparking panic in the streets of Malaysia and
Singapore.
[PHOTO: In shock: Victims receive treatment in Solok, West Sumatra, yesterday
after powerful earthquakes killed scores of people and left many more buried under
collapsed buildings. Photo: AFP]
Officials said the death toll was expected to rise in the latest catastrophe to hit the
beleaguered nation, and hospitals were quickly overwhelmed with the rush of
wounded.
The tremors were felt as far away as Malaysia and Singapore, where hundreds of
people left their office skyscrapers and raced into the streets, some weeping and
screaming, when the ground started to tremble.
"We grabbed our bags and just evacuated," office worker Nicholas Wong told local
radio. "Everyone was panicking."
Scores of people were believed trapped under rubble on Sumatra, prompting the
Government to send in the military to help with rescue efforts.
Communication was cut off with much of the area close to the epicentre of the quakes
and the extent of the damage remained unknown last night.
The first quake of magnitude 6.3 was felt in the West Sumatra provincial capital of
Padang about 11am yesterday, sparking fears it might trigger a tsunami. A second
6.0 magnitude earthquake struck the same area two hours later, causing more panic.
However, there was no immediate tsunami warning after the quakes.
The US Geological Survey said the first quake's epicentre was about 420 kilometres
from Singapore.
"I ran out of the house just like the other neighbours," Padang resident Asmiarti said.
"When we got out, our bodies were still shaking and the trees were also shaking. We
fear there would be a tsunami, but there has been no announcement so far."
A spokesman for President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said: "Seventy people have
been killed. The President has contacted the (West Sumatra) governor directly and
right now the evacuation process by the military and police is under way."
Government officials have begun to rush aid to affected people. "Our priority is to
handle the injured ones, including their families. We have set up six tents at a soccer
field as emergency posts," the mayor of Solok, Syamsu Rahim, said.
"The evacuation process is going on . . . I cannot predict how many people are still
trapped because the process is still on. However, there are many houses collapsed
and I believe that the inhabitants are in them."
REUTERS, AFP
Copyright © 2007. The Age Company Ltd.
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