Strong quake hits Indonesia tourist island, 14 dead
LOMBOK: A powerful earthquake which struck the Indonesian tourist island of Lombok on Sunday killed at least 14 people, injured scores and damaged thousands of homes, officials said.
Five children were among those killed by the shallow 6.4-magnitude early-morning quake, which sent people running outside in panic and triggered landslides on popular mountain hiking routes.
Scores of aftershocks sparked fear among survivors. More than 120 were recorded, the biggest with a magnitude of 5.7, Indonesia’s meteorology agency said.
Local officials have declared a three-day state of emergency. President Joko Widodo is due to visit the island Monday morning, his spokesman said.
“Based on reports, 14 people died, 162 were injured and thousands of homes were damaged,” Indonesian disaster mitigation agency spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho said.
One Malaysian was killed and six injured, the Malaysian foreign ministry said.
“All of them were at the foot of Mount Rinjani when the incident happened,” it said, referencing the spectacular volcano that dominates the island.
The constant aftershocks sparked terrified shouts among scores of people made homeless in the eastern village of Sembalun in the district of the same name, an AFP reporter said.
Some 200 people from 35 families whose house were damaged or destroyed had pitched tents there. The roof of a health clinic had collapsed and its walls had cracked.
Popular trekking trails on Mount Rinjani were closed because of landslides, according to the disaster agency.
The epicentre of the earthquake struck 50 km northeast of Lombok’s main city Mataram, the United States Geological Survey said, far from the main tourist spots on the south and west of the island.
USGS said two of the aftershocks measured more than 5-magnitude.
The jolt was felt some 100 km away in the bustling holiday island of Bali, although there were no immediate reports of damage there.
The quake also rocked the Gili islands off northeast Lombok, which are popular with honeymooners, divers and partygoers.