3 People Were Killed After An Earthquake Rattled Java And Bali Ahead Of Dr M's Visit
It was shallow 6.0-magnitude quake.
By Sadho Ram — 11 Oct 2018, 03:15 PM
A 6.0 magnitude earthquake struck Indonesia's Java and Bali islands on Thursday morning. The shallow quake collapsed homes, causing panic among residents and killed at least three people.
According to national disaster agency spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, the victims in East Java's Sumenep district perished after being crushed by collapsed buildings.
"The earthquake happened early Thursday when they were sleeping and the quake suddenly rocked so they didn't have time to evacuate," Sutopo said.
Residents had to leave their homes in Bali's capital, Denpasar
The nighttime quake was centred at sea, 55 kilometres northeast of Situbondo city.
Indonesia's disaster agency said "the earthquake was felt quite strongly by people in Sumenep and Situbondo for 2-5 seconds. People poured out of their houses. In other areas, the earthquake was felt to be moderate", reported Time.
According to a report in Channel NewsAsia, the quake struck at a relatively shallow depth of 10km. Shallow quakes tend to cause more damage.
The quake comes ahead of the Asean Leaders' Gathering, where Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad is scheduled to arrive
However, despite the earthquake, Tun Dr Mahathir will lead the Malaysian delegation for the Asean Leaders' Gathering. He is expected to hold bilateral discussions with his Asean counterparts on the sidelines of the meeting.
According to Malay Mail, Wisma Putra officials said the prime minister's travel plans were unchanged and that he is still due to depart for Bali this afternoon.
Tun Dr Mahathir will be accompanied by his wife Tun Dr Siti Hasmah Mohd Ali, Foreign Minister Saifuddin Abdullah as well as officials from the Prime Minister's Office and Foreign Ministry.
