2 killed in Indonesian earthquake

Published: Sunday, Nov. 8, 2009 9:42 p.m. MST
 |  E-MAIL | PRINT | FONT + - 

JAKARTA, Indonesia — A strong undersea earthquake killed two people and damaged buildings on the remote island of Sumbawa in central Indonesia, officials said Monday.

At least 20 people were hospitalized on the island after the 6.7-magnitude temblor, many of them with broken bones, said Rustam Pakaya, the head of the Health Ministry's crisis center. He said at least 40 people were injured.

The quake struck at 3:41 a.m. local time near a small island chain just east of the Lombok resort island. It had a depth of 11 miles, and the epicenter was about 830 miles east of the Indonesian capital, Jakarta.

Two people were killed in a part of Sumbawa called Ambalawe, local government spokesman Abdul Wahab Usman said.

"They were hit by a collapsing building," Usman said. "There are believed to be many injuries, but we are still checking."

The quake damaged streets and schools, while a landslide blocked a main road linking the town of Bima to the remote districts, he said.

Indonesia is still clearing the rubble from a devastating 7.6 magnitude quake on West Sumatra that killed more than 1,100 people in September.

Indonesia, a vast island nation of 235 million people, straddles a series of fault lines, making it extremely prone to volcanic and seismic activity.

Comments

You can be the first to comment on this story.

previousnext

Latest comments

Ask just women of childbearing age do they want to decide their reproductive...

Letters: Say heck, not gosh

On behalf of the millions of people worldwide who worship the devine and...

That happened approximately 9 years ago.

Can BYU throw vs. Air Force?

For being a terrible program, Bronco still has one more win than Kyle...go...

3A: Juan Diego wins title

wow, that was a game. #56 for Hurricane seemed to be in on almost every...

That was the most amazing drive and play I have ever seen in high school...

Huntsman blasts media over trip

for stepping up and doing the right thing in challenging portions of the...

A majority of us are apposed to abortion, but we are in even greater...

"Speed kills. Speed beats size everytime. " haha, everytime eh? If that...

Can BYU throw vs. Air Force?

Air Force 35 BYU 21

Advertisements