JAKARTA: A powerful earthquake struck off the southern coast of Indonesia’s heavily populated Java island on Friday, with the country’s disaster agency warning that it could generate a tsunami.
The 6.8 magnitude quake struck offshore at a depth 42 kilometres, some 150 kilometres from Labuan, southwest of the capital Jakarta, according to the United States Geological Survey.
Indonesia’s disaster agency initially pegged the quake at magnitude 7.4 and a depth of 10 kilometres, warning it could spark a tsunami.
Residents in Jakarta fled their homes as buildings in the megacity swayed from the force of the quake.
“The chandelier in my apartment was shaking and I just ran from the 19th floor,” 50-year-old Elisa said.
“Everybody else ran too. It was a really strong jolt and I was very scared.”
At least two people were killed and thousands were forced from their homes after a major 7.3-magnitude earthquake hit the remote Maluku islands in eastern Indonesia this month.
Indonesia experiences frequent seismic and volcanic activity due
to its position on the Pacific
“Ring of Fire”, where tectonic plates collide.
Last year, a 7.5-magnitude quake and a subsequent tsunami in Palu on Sulawesi island killed more than 2,200 people, with another thousand declared missing.
On December 26, 2004, a devastating 9.1-magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of Sumatra and triggered a tsunami that killed 220,000 across the Indian Ocean region, including around 170,000 in Indonesia.
Meanwhile, Indonesian rescuers were battling high tides and strong winds on Friday in a search for 31 people missing after a fishing boat sank in waters off Borneo island, killing at least four, an official of the search and rescue agency said.
There were 37 people on board the vessel, four of whom had been found dead, while two had survived, agency spokesman Iman Saputra said by telephone.
“Rescue efforts will go on for the next four days. The obstacles are high tides and strong winds,” said Saputra, who is based in Banjarmasin, the capital of South Kalimantan province, near the site of the sinking.
The vessel had left the town of Pekalongan on Java island three days ago before running into trouble, Saputra said, adding that the agency had deployed 35 people to hunt for those missing.
Meanwhile, Indonesian rescuers were battling high tides and strong winds on Friday in a search for 31 people missing after a fishing boat sank in waters off Borneo island, killing at least four, an official of the search and rescue agency said.
— AFP
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