Indonesia: Java quake kills scores and injures hundreds
An earthquake on the main Indonesian island of Java has killed scores of people and injured hundreds, say officials.
The 5.6 magnitude quake struck Cianjur town in West Java, at a shallow depth of 10km (6 miles), according to US Geological Survey data.
Scores of people were taken to the hospital, with many treated outside.
Rescuers have worked through the night to try to save others thought to still be trapped under collapsed buildings.
The exact number of people killed so far remains unclear. Indonesia’s National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) has said their official death toll was 103, adding that another figure given by regional governor Ridwan Kamil – 162 – remains unverified.
BNPB said another 390 people were wounded and that 7,000 people had taken shelter in various locations in the area.
Kamil has claimed that a total of 13,000 had been displaced by the disaster and that more remained “trapped in isolated places”. He said officials were “under the assumption that the number of injured and deaths will rise with time”.
Herman Suherman, the head of administration in Cianjur town, said most injuries were bone fractures sustained from people being trapped by debris in buildings.
Many of the injured were treated outside in a hospital car park after the hospital was left without power for several hours following the quake, West Java’s governor said.
Agencies