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Why was Indonesia’s recent earthquake so deadly?

Why was Indonesia’s recent earthquake so deadly?

 


A 5.6-magnitude earthquake struck the Indonesian island of Java on Monday, killing more than 260 people and injuring hundreds.

While earthquakes are common throughout Indonesia, the recent ones cause more deaths and injuries than other earthquakes of similar intensity. The earthquake also caused more damage to buildings and other facilities.

Experts say there are several reasons why this earthquake is different.

Was the earthquake considered “strong”?

The US Geological Survey said the quake had a magnitude of 5.6 and struck at a depth of 10 km.

Earthquakes of this magnitude usually do not cause widespread damage to well-built structures. But officials noted that in general, “there is no one size above which the damage will occur.”

Locals take shelter outside their homes after the earthquake that hit Cianjur, West Java province, Indonesia, November 21, 2022. (Antara Foto/Raisan Al Farisi/via Reuters)

They say the amount of death and destruction depends on several other variables. These include how far something is from the epicenter, the type of surrounding soil and the build quality of the structures.

Many buildings were damaged by the recent earthquake, including Islamic schools, a hospital, and other public buildings. Roads and bridges were also damaged, and the areas around the epicenter suffered power outages.

Why did the earthquake cause so much damage?

Experts say one of the variables in the recent earthquake was that the hardest hit areas were close to existing fault lines. A fault is a place with a long break in the rock that makes up the Earth’s surface. When an earthquake occurs in one of these faults, the rock on one side of the fault will slide relative to the other side.

In addition, the recent earthquake caused more destruction due to its depth and the failure of many buildings in the area to be built with earthquake-resistant methods.

A woman walks past the rubble of buildings destroyed by Monday’s earthquake in Cianjur, West Java, Indonesia on Tuesday, November 22, 2022. The earthquake destroyed buildings on Indonesia’s densely populated main island, killing several people and injuring hundreds. (AP Photo/Tatan Syuflana)

“Although the earthquake was of medium magnitude, it was close to the surface…and it is located inland, close to where people live,” said Gayatri Marliani. She is a professor of geology at Gadjah Mada University in Yogyakarta, Indonesia. “The energy was still great enough to cause significant shaking that caused damage,” Marliani told the Associated Press.

Experts say that the bombed area in West Java probably contains the highest number of internal faults than any other part of the island.

Many buildings in the area were not built with earthquake-resistant designs, said Danny Heilman Natawidaga. He is a seismologist at the Geotechnology Research Center in Indonesia.

“This makes an earthquake of this magnitude and depth much more devastating,” he told the Associated Press.

Earthquake survivors are treated outside a hospital in Cianjur, West Java, Indonesia, November 21, 2022. (AP Photo/Kholid)

How common are these types of earthquakes in Indonesia?

Indonesia, a country of over 270 million people, is often hit by earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and large ocean waves known as tsunamis. This is because the country lies within the so-called Pacific Ring of Fire, which is a collection of volcanoes and fault lines. The area covers about 40,000 km and is where the majority of earthquakes in the world strike.

Many earthquakes in Indonesia are minor and cause little damage. But there were also deadly earthquakes.

FILE – People look at a damaged hospital building following the earthquake in Mamuju, West Sulawesi province, Indonesia, January 15, 2021 (Antara Foto/Akbar Tado via Reuters)

In February, a 6.2-magnitude earthquake killed at least 25 people and injured more than 460 people in West Sumatra province. In January 2021, a 6.2-magnitude earthquake killed more than 100 people and injured nearly 6,500 in the province of West Sulawesi.

And in 2004, a 9.1-magnitude earthquake off the island of Sumatra in northern Indonesia triggered a tsunami that hit 14 countries. The disaster killed 230,000 people along the coast of the Indian Ocean, more than half of whom live in Indonesia.

I’m Brian Lane.

The Associated Press reported this story. Bryan Lynn adapted the report for VOA Learning English.

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words in this story

size – n. The sheer size or importance of something

variable – n. amount or position can change

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