REUTERS, Tuesday March 6, 9:27 PM
Two quakes kill at least 70 in Sumatra
PADANG, Indonesia, March 6 (Reuters) - A strong earthquake and a powerful
aftershock hit Indonesia's Sumatra island on Tuesday, killing at least 70 people, and
trapping scores more under flattened buildings.
Tremors from the initial 6.3 magnitude earthquake were felt as far away as Malaysia
and Singapore, where several buildings were evacuated.
Hospitals in some areas of West Sumatra province were overwhelmed with dozens of
injured. Many people have fled their homes and fears of aftershocks pushed
authorities in Padang, the West Sumatra provincial capital, to set up emergency tents
at a soccer field.
"I thought it was a big vehicle passing through in front of the house, Misbadi, a
50-year-old Solok resident who broke his right arm, told Reuters. "I ran out of the
house, but I was hit by a collapsing building," said Misbadi, who like many
Indonesians uses only one name.
Television footage showed staff from a hospital rushing out in panic while others wept
in fear as tremors shook a building.
Yohannes Dahlan, secretary of the West Sumatra government, said around 200
people had been injured.
Scores of people were believed trapped under rubble, prompting the government to
send in the military to assist with rescue efforts. The Red Cross also deployed a rapid
response team to assess the damage and needs of victims.
MILITARY EVACUATION
Cabinet Secretary Sudi Silalahi told reporters in Jakarta that 70 people had been
killed and the mililtay and police were conducting an evacuation.
Residents in three badly hit areas of West Sumtra -- Solok, Tanah Datar and Padang
Panjang -- erected tents outside their damaged homes, moved in with relatives or
prepared to spend the night in schools and mosques.
The government and Red Cross distributed food supplies such as cooking oil and rice,
tents and medicine and drinking water.
"Our priority is to handle the injured ones, including their families. We have set up six
tents at a soccer field as emergency posts," Syamsu Rahim, the mayor of Solok
town, told Reuters.
"Those whose houses are damaged or destroyed are staying with their neighbours.
People are close to one another here," he said, adding that some people had begun
returning to their house.
"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."
The first quake of magnitude 6.3 was felt in the West Sumatra provincial capital of
Padang at around 11 a.m., sparking panic among seaside residents, who feared it
might trigger a tsunami.
The United States Geological Survey said the first quake's epicentre was around 420
km (260 miles) from Singapore. The Indonesian national quake centre measured the
quake at 5.8.
A second 6.0 magnitude earthquake struck the same area two hours later, causing
more panic.
Padang is one of the few Indonesian cities where a tsunami warning system is in
place. A quake in the Indian Ocean off Sumatra island in December 2004 and the
tsunami it caused left about 170,000 people dead or missing in northern Aceh
province.
RING OF FIRE
"It was really strong. I panicked, I ran out of the house just like the other neighbours,"
housewife Asmiarti, whose home is on the northern Padang shore, told Reuters by
phone.
"When we got out, our bodies were still shaking and the trees were also shaking. We
feared there would be a tsunami, but there has been no announcement so far," she
said.
The quakes did not affect state oil firm Pertamina's Dumai refinery in central Sumatra
and caused no significant damage to a plant of Indonesia's largest cement maker, PT
Semen Gresik.
Earthquakes are frequent in Indonesia, the world's fourth most populous country. Its
17,000 islands sprawl along a belt of intense volcanic and seismic activity, part of
what is called the "Pacific Ring of Fire".
In March 2005, a quake killed hundreds on Nias island, off the west coast of northern
Sumatra.
The quake was also felt across in Singapore where tall buildings in the business
district swayed slightly. Traders said there was little or no impact on financial markets
trading.
The tremor was also felt in west coast areas of Malaysia, the meteorological office in
that country said.
(Additional reporting by Harry Suhartono, Muklis Ali, Ahmad Pathoni; Mita Valina Liem
and Achmad Sukarsono in Jakarta; Jamie Lee and Geert De Clercq in Singapore;
and Jalil Hamid in Kuala Lumpur)
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