7 killed in 6.2-magnitude earthquake in Indonesia’s Sumatra island

BASAMAN, Indonesia – A strong and shallow earthquake rocked the Indonesian island of Sumatra on Friday, killing seven people and injuring 85 others, while causing panic on the island and in neighboring Malaysia and Singapore.

The 6.2-magnitude earthquake struck about 66 kilometers (41 miles) northwest of Bukittinggi, a mountainous town in West Sumatra province, according to the US Geological Survey. Its center was about 12 kilometers (7.4 mi) below the Earth’s surface.

At least four people, including two children, were killed in Basaman district and three people died in neighboring West Basaman district. The National Disaster Mitigation Agency said at least 410 homes and buildings were damaged.

More than 5,000 people fled their homes to temporary shelters, most of them in devastated areas in Basaman and West Basaman provinces, agency spokesperson Abdul-Mahari said in a statement.

“We are still focused on search and rescue efforts for the victims,” ​​Al-Mahari said.

The authorities are still investigating the full extent of the damage.

Ahmed Noor, a resident of Talamaw village in West Basaman district, said people fled their homes in search of safer places when the quake struck. He said he was preparing to open his shop in a nearby market and came home to check on his family. He said his house was damaged and his wife was in pain because her leg was hit by debris.

“Thank God…my wife and two children managed to escape when the walls started falling,” Nour said. “The earthquake destroyed everything in my house, but I am thankful that my wife and children are safe…with only minor injuries.”

He said he and other survivors have set up makeshift tents near the government office and are waiting for relief from the government or volunteers.

Dwikorita Karnawati, head of the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency, said there was no danger of a tsunami, but warned of possible aftershocks.

Television reports showed panicked people rushing into the streets in Padang, the capital of West Sumatra province, and patients at a hospital in West Pasaman being evacuated from the building. Reports also showed mud-filled streams from landslides caused by the earthquake, and a mosque, a school and several homes flattened.

The earthquakes were also felt in neighboring Malaysia and Singapore. A video clip on social media showed residents gathering in the streets after tall buildings in Kuala Lumpur swayed for a few seconds. Eyewitnesses said their doors and seats shook and pictures and paintings swayed on the walls.

Indonesia, a vast archipelago of more than 270 million people, is frequently hit by earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and tidal waves due to its location on the “Ring of Fire,” an arc of volcanoes and fault lines in the Pacific basin.

In January 2021, a 6.2-magnitude earthquake killed at least 105 people and injured nearly 6,500 in West Sulawesi Province.

A powerful earthquake and tsunami in the Indian Ocean in 2004 killed nearly 230,000 people in more than a dozen countries, mostly in Indonesia.

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