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At least 14 dead in earthquake on Indonesian island

At least 14 people have been killed and dozens injured after a 6.4-magnitude earthquake on a popu...
Newstalk
Newstalk

10.36 29 Jul 2018


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At least 14 dead in earthquake...

At least 14 dead in earthquake on Indonesian island

Newstalk
Newstalk

10.36 29 Jul 2018


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At least 14 people have been killed and dozens injured after a 6.4-magnitude earthquake on a popular tourist island in Indonesia.

The powerful tremor, which was followed by two smaller earthquakes and 60 aftershocks, hit Lombok on Sunday.

Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, spokesman for Indonesia's disaster mitigation agency, said some 40 people are injured and dozens of houses were damaged.

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"We estimate the number will keep rising because we are not done collecting data."

People were sent running from homes and hotels in the early morning as the earthquake hit. Dozens of single-storey houses and taller buildings were damaged.

Mr Nugroho added: "People in East Lombok and Mataram felt the strong quake for 10 seconds, residents were panicking and running outside of their homes."

The epicentre of the earthquake struck 30 miles (50km) outside the main city of Mataram, away from the main tourist sites in the south and west of the island.

The US Geological Survey said it had a depth of 4.4 miles (7km).

Two of the aftershocks exceeded a magnitude of 5.0.

Zulkifli, who lives in North Lombok, an area close to the epicentre, told the AFP news agency: "The earthquake was very strong and everybody in my house panicked, we all ran outside.

"All my neighbours also ran outside and the electricity was suddenly cut off."

A 30-year-old Malaysian woman is among those killed.

There were reports it was felt in Bali - 100km away - but there were no reports of damage.

No tsunami alert has been issued.

Indonesia sits on the Pacific Ring of Fire, a seismic activity hotspot, and is frequently hit by earthquakes.

Lombok is an area known for pristine beaches and mountains.


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