Residents flee homes after 6.8 quake hits Sumatra

PADANG - An earthquake of magnitude 6.8 has rattled parts of Indonesia, sending people in Padang, on Sumatra island, rushing out of their homes and heading towards high ground in fear of a possible tsunami.

An official said there were reports of houses flattened elsewhere on Sumatra, but by three hours after the quake hit there were no reports of any casualties.

Jakarta-based meteorological analyst Wijayanto said: "There are no tsunami reports, so residents can return home, but they must still be careful of aftershocks".

Later a 6.0-magnitude earthquake, centred 100km southwest of Padang, rattled Sumatra. Also yesterday a strong earthquake rocked the Tokyo area, causing minor damage to some buildings and delays in public transportation.

The 6.1-magnitude quake was centred northeast of Tokyo and was focused about 60km underground, the Meteorological Agency said, adding that there was no danger of a tsunami.

Indonesia has experienced a series of quakes and aftershocks since a massive temblor on Boxing Day triggered a tsunami across the Indian Ocean that killed more than 180,000 people.

Nearly 50,000 other people are still unaccounted for from that disaster.

Another quake off Sumatra on March 28 is estimated to have killed up to 2000.

Yesterday's quake was felt in Indonesia's neighbour Singapore as well. Singapore's Channel News Asia said residents of high-rise apartments in the city state reported feeling their buildings swaying.

A reporter in Padang, a city of some 800,000 on Sumatra's west coast, saw many frightened people leave their houses and seek higher ground.

"It's part of the chain of previous quakes. It's not an aftershock," Fauzi, another official with the meteorological bureau in Jakarta, said.

 

- REUTERS