Asia-Pacific

More than 60 injured in Indonesia's quake

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2010-04-08 00:26

JAKARTA - More than 60 people were injured after a magnitude-7.2 quake hit Simeulue district in Indonesia's Aceh province on Wednesday.

More than 60 injured in Indonesia's quake

A paramedic tends to an injured child after an earthquake hit Sinabang April 7, 2010. A major earthquake of 7.2 magnitude struck off the coast of Aceh in north-western Indonesia on Wednesday triggering panic and power blackouts, but no deaths were reported and a tsunami alert was later lifted. [Agencies]

In Gunung Putih village, 21 people were injured, four seriously, according to a report of Antara news agency.

Meanwhile, Chairman of Teupah Selatan subdistrict, Helmi, said 41 people were badly injured in the area due to the earthquake which occurred at 5:15 a.m. on Wednesday. All the victims were rushed to a temporary hospital.

Antara also quoted Vice Governor of Aceh province Muhammad Nazar as saying that Simeulue district would be in dark for some days since around 30 electricity poles had collapsed.

Personnel from Simeulue administration office was still counting the number of victims in the affected areas, he added.

Some 15 aftershocks jolted Simeulue district on Wednesday after the early morning earthquake, Antara said. The temblor had its epicenter at 73 kilometers southeast Sinabang, Simeulue district, at the depth of 34 kilometers.

"Tens of aftershocks measuring less than 5.0 on the Richter scale are jolting the area after the main quake. We keep observing those with a magnitude of more than 5.0 on the Richter scale," an official from Mata Ie Geophysics Agency, Eridawati, was quoted as saying.

Meanwhile, North Sumatra province's governor Syamsul Arifin said the earthquake has not caused significant material damage in the province.

The earthquake had not inflicted significant material damage anywhere in North Sumatra. There had been only minor interruptions at local power plants, the governor was quoted as saying.