Quake hits Padang, thousands flee

Quake hits Padang, thousands flee

Agencies, Jakarta

Thousands of people have fled their homes to higher ground in
Padang after a 6.7-magnitude earthquake shook the West Sumatra
provincial capital on Sunday.

Antara reported that a convoy of vehicles left the coastal
areas for Kuranji, Lubuk Begalung and Lubuk Kilangan Indarung
subdistricts. People appeared unprepared for their exodus, with
their vehicles not being loaded up with belongings.

In the downtown area, broken windows could be seen in some
buildings.

Residents have reported at least five aftershocks since the
quake occurred at around 5.30 p.m. People in Padang had been
warned of the possibility of further earthquakes following a
major earthquake that hit the island of Nias on March 28.

A United States-run tsunami alert center said later in the day
there was no threat of massive tidal waves, after the powerful
earthquake struck Padang.

"This earthquake is located outside the Pacific. No tsunami
threat exists to coastlines in the Pacific," the Pacific Tsunami
Warning Center in Honolulu, Hawaii said in a statement on its
website.

The center, which is run by the National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration, noted however that "earthquakes of
this size sometimes generate local tsunamis that can be
destructive along coasts located within a few hundred kilometers
to the earthquake epicenter," and urged local authorities to "be
aware of this possibility and take appropriate action."