Indonesia: Strong earthquake hit West Sumatra
A strong earthquake hit Padang, West Sumatra around 5 PM local time Wednesday.
A video clip posted by a YouTube user in Padang:
The undersea quake measuring 7.6 on Richter Scale has caused massive building damage and casualties, mainly around Pariaman, a coastal area of Padang.
- Photo uploaded on Twitpic by marcellodecaran
An international tsunami warning [id] has been issued for Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, and India, but was lifted about an hour later.
Indonesian news agency Antara reported that the death toll has reached 75, but may surge since there are still victims buried under the rubble, while many still choose to stay outside [id] of their houses fearing further tremors would strike.
According to First Secretary Purnomo Sidik of the National Board for Disaster Management (BNPB) in Antara, the BNPB headquarters in Jakarta haven't received detailed information from the field due to communications disruptions in West Sumatra.
Fifty percent of the city has sustained damage and inbound flights to Padang were cancelled following damage to the runways at Minangkabau Airport.
The Indonesian twittersphere is filled with sympathy messages, updates to and from relatives, and relief reports.
henzter: just received reply to my sms, from an acquaintance @ sumbar: still looking for brother. *am praying*
martimanurung: South and North Sumatra Provinces will help West Sumatra Province for quake relief.
veraalexandra: God please help our brothers n sisters in Padang..give them strenght n perseverance..amien.
aditdmid: bru lht dmpak gempa Padang td sore. evakuasi mlm ni trhmbt hjn deras & mati lstrk,75% kota lumpuh. smg para krbn dbri kkuatn&ktabahn. amin.
The Vice President, Jusuf Kalla, shortened the swearing in of new parliament members and sent six ministers to the location to assess the damage.
aulia: We voted for you. Our first official request is for you to donate your pocket money to the quake victims. They need it more than you.
Around 11:45 PM local time darlingalih says:
darlingalih: RT @isatbb: Jaringan data GPRS ISAT aman terkendali di Padang, anjuran komunikasi ke Padang via fitur BB: Email, BBM, YM, FB. Please RT
Minister for Social Welfare Abu Rizal Bakrie said that infrastructural devastation caused by the recent earthquake could be as massive as that which occurred during the 2006 Yogyakarta earthquake.
8 comments
What type of relief supplies do the victims of the recent earthquake need from us in Bali?
I provide information for voluntary donation through the Indonesian Red Cross (Palang Merah Indonesia) on my website at http://www.baju-busanamuslim.com/info-west-sumatera-earthquake.html
Hi
The British Red Cross have launched the Asia Pacific Disasters Appeal to respond to the earthquakes in Indonesia, as well as the tsunami in Sumatra and typhoon in south-east Asia. They are urgently looking for donations to help support Red Cross emergency response operations across the region.All the info is at:
http://www.redcross.org.uk/asiapacificappeal
Thanks
Alex
I live in Sumatra Island, in Riau the other province of sumatra, i was online (FB) when the earthquake happened. its a very long term of eartquake and also a hard one, its about around 2 minutes, i feel so dizy at that time, but Thanks God Nothing Happens in Riau. But I just have a hard thinking, is it possible the eartquake happens in Riau ? (Middle of sumatra i think, sorry i’m not good to read map :)..thx