Quake rocks eastern Indonesia, 16 killed
Yemris Fointuna, The Jakarta Post, Kupang
A series of strong earthquakes rocked parts of East Nusa Tenggara early on Friday, killing at least 16 people, injuring some 165 others and damaging hundreds of buildings, seismologists and officials said.
They said the death toll could soar as they had not received reports of damage and casualties from remote areas due to transportation and communication problems.
The quake struck Alor island, some 1,000 kilometers east of the resort island of Bali. It was felt in neighboring East Timor.
The disaster was followed by aftershocks, residents and officials said.
Hospitals in Alor were struggling to cope with the 165 people injured in the quake, with at least 93 of them sustaining serious injuries.
Alor Regent Ans Takalapeta said the bodies of 16 victims had been evacuated from buildings that had collapsed.
He said the victims died mostly after the roofs of their houses collapsed.
The disaster swept away at least 22 houses and damaged 649 others, including 205 seriously, the regent said. One government building, three schools and eight places of worship were also destroyed or damaged, he added.
Residents in Alor are now living without electricity. "All activities of people here have come to a standstill. This town is like no-man's land because they have abandoned their houses," Ans said.
Most victims in the affected areas have set up camp outside their houses fearing further tremors, while tents were pitched outside Alor's main hospital in the town of Kalabahi to treat patients.
Ans said his administration lacked emergency tents for the victims, and asked the central government to provide food, medicine and other needs.
"We also need a helicopter and speed boats, to help monitor and identify isolated areas affected by the quake," he said.
Rivai Marulak, the Meteorology and Geophysics Agency (BMG) head in Kupang, East Nusa Tenggara, put the magnitude of the quake, which struck at 4:26 a.m., at 6.0 on the Richter scale, while the Observatory of Earth Sciences in Strasbourg recorded the tremor at 7.3.
The epicenter was some 35 kilometers east of Kalabai, Alor's main town, and 33 kilometers below sea level, Rivai added.
He said the strong quake also caused tidal waves on several nearby isles, including Pantar Island, Buaya Island, Pura Island, Ternate Island and Adonara Island, all in Lembata regency, as well as islands in Selatan Daya regency in Maluku province.
"The tsunami waves...may have submerged coastal areas on the affected islands," Rivai added.
In the East Timor capital Dili, roughly 50 kilometers to the southeast of Alor, many residents were forced to flee their homes, AFP reported.
There were no casualties and no major damage to the state, but residents said a floating hotel in Dili's natural harbor was briefly grounded as the quake caused waters to recede. Aftershocks continued to be felt.
East Timor's national security chief David Ximenes was quoted as saying meteorologists had warned of a major seismic event in the next two days and warned citizens to stay away from shorelines and major rivers where tidal waves were a risk.
Indonesia, the world's largest archipelagic nation, is prone to seismic upheaval because of its location in an area where the Australian continental plate is being pushed underneath Southeast Asia, creating an arc of volcanoes and oceanic trenches.
In February at least 28 people were killed when a series of powerful earthquakes hit Papua province. A month earlier a quake damaged more than 6,000 buildings and caused financial losses of about US$12 million on Bali and Lombok.
A quake killed at least 94 people and damaged more than 16,000 in Bengkulu province in June 2000.