6.4 Magnitude Earthquake Strikes Lombok

14 deaths reported  

AGENCIES
07/29/2018

A powerful magnitude-6.4 earthquake has struck the popular Indonesian tourist destination of Lombok, killing 14 people and injuring hundreds, the country's disaster mitigation agency says.

The quake damaged more than 1,000 single-storey houses and taller buildings and was felt in a wider area, including in Bali, where no damage or casualties were reported. It hit the northern part of Lombok island early on Sunday morning when many people were still sleeping.

"We jumped out of our beds to avoid anything falling on our heads," said Jean-Paul Volckaert, who was woken by the quake while sleeping in the Puncak Hotel near Senggigi on Lombok.

The quake, which was quickly followed by an aftershock of magnitude-5.4 in the same area, was centred 50 kilometres north-east of the city of Mataram, the US Geological Survey said.

Disaster mitigation agency spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho said the number of casualties could increase as information is still being collected from across the island.

An Indonesian village security officer examines the remains of houses

He said the East Lombok district was the hardest hit with at least 10 deaths, including 30 year-old Malaysian national Isma Wida.

Ten people in the district also suffered major injuries, another 10 people had minor injuries and dozens of houses were damaged, Mr Nugroho said.

Mr Nugroho said most of the fatalities and injuries were caused by falling slabs of concrete.

A paramedic gives treatment to injured people outside of a hospital after an earthquake hit Sembalun Selong village in Lombok Timur, Indonesia (Photo: ANTARA)

In a short statement to the ABC, the Australian Consulate General in Bali confirmed that no Australians are believed to be among those affected at this stage.

The Consulate General said it has been in contact with local authorities and are monitoring the situation closely.

Earlier, Mr Nugroho tweeted pictures of houses with collapsed roofs and walls.

Authorities are searching collapsed homes looking for more victims.

Mr Nugroho said the earthquake also triggered a large landslide from Mount Rinjani, a popular trekking destination.

"Rinjani mountain climbing is closed temporarily because there are indication of landslide around the mountain," Mr Nugroho said in a statement.

Local news Metro TV reported that people were still sleeping when the first quake hit and they quickly fled their houses in panic. Most of the people were still waiting outside their houses in fear of aftershocks, Metro TV said.

Collapsed structures caused the majority of fatalities

The earthquake struck at 6:47am on Sunday (local time) and was only 10 kilometres deep, a shallow depth that would have amplified its effect.

According to Mr Nugroho the initial earthquake lasted for just 10 seconds.

The second struck less than a hour later.

A magnitude 6.4-earthquake is considered strong and is capable of causing severe damage.

The European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre, the European quake agency, put the magnitude at 6.5.

The earthquake was on land and did not trigger any waves or tsunami.

Lombok is the next island east of Bali.

Quakes are common in Indonesia, which is located on the seismically active "Ring of Fire" that surrounds the shores of the Pacific Ocean.

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Posted in: Indonesia,Indonesian Earthquakes,Indonesian Government