Three quakes jolt Bandung, Jakarta
The Jakarta Post, Bandung/Padang/Jakarta
Three major earthquakes jolted western parts of Java island on Friday, one of which could be felt in Jakarta, as fears over a volcanic eruption gradually subsided.
While no damage was reported in Jakarta, the earthquake that affected Bandung city had damaged at least 170 buildings particularly in the southern Bandung area.
The scale of the damage was huge in Bandung as three earthquakes were felt in the city in one day.
Bandung volcanology office recorded the first tremor, measuring 5 on the Richter scale at 9:06 a.m. with its epicenter located some 33 kilometers south of Bandung city.
An hour later, precisely at 10:46 a.m., the second big earthquake, measuring 6 on the Richter scale, again shook the city with its epicenter some 70 kilometers south of Sukabumi city in West Java. The epicenter was 70 kilometers beneath the Indian Ocean. The third quake that hit the city measured 5.6 on the Richter scale at 11:17 a.m, with its epicenter somewhere in the Sunda Strait where Anak Krakatau continues to smolder. The third quake was also felt in Jakarta.
Of the three quakes, the first quake resulted in the most damage as its epicenter was only five kilometers beneath the Gunung Halu district in Bandung regency, some 30 kilometers south of Bandung city. More than 170 houses and school buildings in the area were damaged.
After the quake, thousands of residents fled their houses in droves and headed for open fields.
Yusep Kuswari, 30, a Sukasari resident in Gunung Halu, whose house was destroyed in the quake, described the tremor as huge.
"I thought it was doomsday," he said.
The earthquakes were not only felt in Bandung city, which is preparing for the Asian-African Summit next week, but were also felt in other outlying cities such as Cimahi, Garut, Tasikmalaya and Pangandaran beach in Ciamis regency.
Hendri Subakti, the chief of the Bandung Meteorology and Geophysics Agency, said that the quakes were not related to the activities in Mount Tangkuban Perahu in the area. It was purely a tectonic quake that happened after seismic movement in Mount Patuha, said Hendri. He called on people to remain calm, as quakes in Java island were never above 7 on the Richter scale.
The three earthquakes came only two days after Mount Tangkuban Perahu near Bandung and Anak Krakatau in the Sunda Strait showed increased activity following major temblors on Nias island and in Aceh province recently.
In Jakarta, many residents were not aware that the city had been shaken by the quake that had its epicenter in the Sunda Strait, some hundreds of kilometers from Jakarta.
"Was there an earthquake in Jakarta? I did not feel it," said Primastuti Handayani, who works for a local media company.
The latest major quake to hit the capital measured 6.5 on the Richter scale. The earthquake, which occurred on Oct. 25 five years ago, left some cracks in buildings and shattered glass windows.
Meanwhile, as Bandung residents were jittery after the quake, people living near Mount Talang in West Sumatra breathed a sigh of relief as the rumbling volcano decreased its activities in the past two days. The volcano erupted on Tuesday, forcing over 25,000 residents near the volcano to seek refuge. "We are evaluating whether the residents should be told to return home within the next two days, after there is a sign that the volcano's activity has continued to decline," said Gamawan Fauzi, Solok Regent.
Besides Mount Talang, Mount Tangkuban Perahu and Anak Krakatau also showed no sign of increased activity on Friday.