Three quakes jolt Bandung, Jakarta

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.