Posted: 03 November 2010 1937 hrs
JAKARTA : A 6.0-magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of eastern Indonesia on Wednesday, but there were no reports of damage, an official said.
The epicentre was 106 kilometres (66 miles) southeast of Kaimana in West Papua province, beneath the sea at a depth of 50 kilometres, a government seismologist said.
"So far, we haven't received any reports about damage," he said.
The US Geological Survey said it had recorded a 6.1-magnitude quake at a depth of 29 kilometres in the same area.
The region is sparsely populated and off limits to foreign aid groups and journalists due to Jakarta's sensitivity over a separatist movement among Papua's indigenous Melanesians.
Indonesia is reeling from the dual disasters of a tsunami which killed more than 400 people in the western Mentawai islands last week and an erupting volcano which has killed 36 people in central Java.
The archipelago of 240 million people stretches from the Pacific to the Indian oceans and is studded with active volcanoes and fringed by shifting continental plates. - AFP/ms
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
Earthquake hits Serbia, two killed
Posted: 03 November 2010 1050 hrs
KRALJEVO, Serbia : An earthquake struck Serbia early Wednesday, killing two people, wounding dozens and inflicting substantial damage on the city of Kraljevo where electricity and other services were cut.
The 5.6-magnitude quake hit at 1:56 am (0056 GMT) with its epicentre 10 kilometres (six miles) north of Kraljevo in the centre of the country south of the capital Belgrade, the Serbian seismological institute said.
"A couple in their 50s was killed at Grdica, a suburb of Kraljevo, in the earthquake during the night," the interior ministry said in a statement.
Following the tremor, the authorities in Kraljevo declared an emergency situation as the town and some surrounding villages were badly damaged. This will allow the municipal authorities to get help nationally as local services cannot handle the demand.
Rescue teams have been deployed but had not found anyone trapped under the rubble, police said.
B92 television reported that emergency services in Kraljevo had treated dozens of injured.
In the village of Vitanovac, the epicenter of the quake, some 70 per cent of houses were severely damaged, many with their roofs collapsed. Some inhabitants were putting back tiles that fell off during the quake.
Zivan Milivojevic, a 70-year old pensioner, was trying to estimate the damage to his house.
"My entire home is destroyed. Forty years of work gone. The house is no longer habitable," Milivojevic told AFP, showing a wall clock that fell and stopped at 1:59.
Following the quake, Kraljevo was plunged into darkness as power was cut while phone lines and water supply were also severed, local media reported.
According to Kraljevo mayor Ljubisa Simovic, some 25 per cent of the town was still out of electricity and some parts of the city had no heating.
The some school buildings suffered substantial damage, as well as the city hall. The hospital was also damaged, notably its operating theatres.
Many shop windows were broken, while some cars were destroyed after concrete blocks fell over.
The quake was felt across the country, including the capital Belgrade about 150 kilometres north of Kraljevo.
The US Geological Survey measured it with a magnitude of 5.3 at a relatively shallow depth of 10 kilometres.
It was followed by four other less powerful aftershocks, the Serbian institute said. - AFP/wk/ms
KRALJEVO, Serbia : An earthquake struck Serbia early Wednesday, killing two people, wounding dozens and inflicting substantial damage on the city of Kraljevo where electricity and other services were cut.
The 5.6-magnitude quake hit at 1:56 am (0056 GMT) with its epicentre 10 kilometres (six miles) north of Kraljevo in the centre of the country south of the capital Belgrade, the Serbian seismological institute said.
"A couple in their 50s was killed at Grdica, a suburb of Kraljevo, in the earthquake during the night," the interior ministry said in a statement.
Following the tremor, the authorities in Kraljevo declared an emergency situation as the town and some surrounding villages were badly damaged. This will allow the municipal authorities to get help nationally as local services cannot handle the demand.
Rescue teams have been deployed but had not found anyone trapped under the rubble, police said.
B92 television reported that emergency services in Kraljevo had treated dozens of injured.
In the village of Vitanovac, the epicenter of the quake, some 70 per cent of houses were severely damaged, many with their roofs collapsed. Some inhabitants were putting back tiles that fell off during the quake.
Zivan Milivojevic, a 70-year old pensioner, was trying to estimate the damage to his house.
"My entire home is destroyed. Forty years of work gone. The house is no longer habitable," Milivojevic told AFP, showing a wall clock that fell and stopped at 1:59.
Following the quake, Kraljevo was plunged into darkness as power was cut while phone lines and water supply were also severed, local media reported.
According to Kraljevo mayor Ljubisa Simovic, some 25 per cent of the town was still out of electricity and some parts of the city had no heating.
The some school buildings suffered substantial damage, as well as the city hall. The hospital was also damaged, notably its operating theatres.
Many shop windows were broken, while some cars were destroyed after concrete blocks fell over.
The quake was felt across the country, including the capital Belgrade about 150 kilometres north of Kraljevo.
The US Geological Survey measured it with a magnitude of 5.3 at a relatively shallow depth of 10 kilometres.
It was followed by four other less powerful aftershocks, the Serbian institute said. - AFP/wk/ms
Thursday, October 28, 2010
Quake jolts northwest Pakistan
Posted: 28 October 2010 1320 hrs
ISLAMABAD: A moderate earthquake of 5.7 magnitude jolted northwest Pakistan near the border with Afghanistan on Thursday but there were no immediate reports of casualties, an official said.
Tremors were felt in several cities in the northwest province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and its capital Peshawar as well as in Pakistan-administered Kashmir, meteorological department chief Arif Mehmood told AFP.
The quake struck at 08:59 am (0359 GMT) with a magnitude of 5.7 and its epicentre was located 280 kilometres (175) northwest of Peshawar near the Afghanistan-Tajikistan border, he said.
"No loss of life or damage to property has been immediately reported," he said.
Pakistan was hit by a 7.6-magnitude earthquake in October 2005 that killed more than 73,000 people, mainly in Pakistan-controlled Kashmir and parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
-AFP/wk
ISLAMABAD: A moderate earthquake of 5.7 magnitude jolted northwest Pakistan near the border with Afghanistan on Thursday but there were no immediate reports of casualties, an official said.
Tremors were felt in several cities in the northwest province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and its capital Peshawar as well as in Pakistan-administered Kashmir, meteorological department chief Arif Mehmood told AFP.
The quake struck at 08:59 am (0359 GMT) with a magnitude of 5.7 and its epicentre was located 280 kilometres (175) northwest of Peshawar near the Afghanistan-Tajikistan border, he said.
"No loss of life or damage to property has been immediately reported," he said.
Pakistan was hit by a 7.6-magnitude earthquake in October 2005 that killed more than 73,000 people, mainly in Pakistan-controlled Kashmir and parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
-AFP/wk
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
23 dead, scores missing after Indonesia quake
Posted: 26 October 2010 1635 hrs
JAKARTA - At least 23 people are dead and scores missing, including nine Australians, after a powerful earthquake hit Indonesia's west coast and triggered a tsunami, officials said Tuesday.
The 7.7-magnitude earthquake, which struck in the Mentawai Islands area west of Sumatra late Monday, caused waves as high as three metres (10 feet) that damaged residential areas in several islands.
A tsunami warning was issued after the quake and a group of Australian visitors reported that their boat was destroyed by a "wall of white water" crashing into a bay.
Rick Hallet, an Australian who operates a boat-chartering business in Sumatra, said he had 15 people on board his vessel in a bay off the islands when the quake struck.
"We felt a bit of a shake underneath the boat... then within several minutes we heard an almighty roar... I immediately thought of a tsunami and looked out to sea and that's when we saw the wall of white water coming at us," he said.
Arlyno, an official from the Disaster Management Agency, told AFP that 23 people were killed in the Mentawai islands and that 167 people had gone missing.
While remote, the Mentawai Islands are popular with tourists, especially surfers.
Health Ministry Crisis Centre head Mudjiharto, who goes by one name, said the waves reached three metres high and waters swept as far as 600 metres inland on South Pagai island, one of the Mentawai chain.
"Eighty percent of buildings in Muntei village have been damaged by the waves and many people are missing there," Mudjiharto said.
He said medical personnel were on their way to the hardest-hit areas.
Rescuers launched a hunt for a boat believed to be carrying a group of nine Australians which has been missing since the quake.
"We are sending a boat and a chartered plane to search for the boat," said Andrew Judge of SurfAid International.
It was reportedly not equipped with a satellite telephone but SurfAid's Dave Jenkins said its Australian captain Chris Scurrah had "been around here for a long time. He knew to contact in if he could. So that's why we're extra concerned."
The undersea quake hit at 9:42pm (1442 GMT) at a depth of 20.6 kilometres (12.8 miles), 240 kilometres west of Bengkulu on Sumatra island and 280 kilometres south of Padang, the US Geological Survey said.
"A significant tsunami was generated by this earthquake," said the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center. The warning was later withdrawn after the danger of further waves had passed.
The first tremor was followed by strong magnitude 6.1 and 6.2 aftershocks several hours later.
Hallet recounted his group's ordeal when the quake struck, with some climbing trees to survive.
"The bay we were in was several hundred metres across and the wall of white water was from one side to the other, it was quite scary," he told Fairfax Radio Network.
Another boat was anchored next to them, he said.
"The wave picked that boat up and brought it towards us and ran straight into us and our boat exploded, caught on fire, we had a fireball on the back deck and right through the saloon within seconds.
"I ordered everyone up to the top deck to get as high as possible, then the boat exploded and we had to abandon ship," he told Australia's Nine Network.
The group jumped into the water, some of them being swept 200 metres inland, and took shelter by climbing trees, waiting for 20 minutes to half an hour until the surges passed.
Eventually all the group, nine of whom were Australian, were accounted for, he said.
Residents reported shaking as far away as the West Sumatran provincial capital of Padang when the main quake struck.
Indonesia sits on the Pacific "Ring of Fire," where the meeting of continental plates causes high volcanic and seismic activity, and the archipelago is frequently struck by powerful earthquakes.
A 7.1-magnitude quake off the north coast of Papua in June killed 17 people and left thousands homeless.
The 2004 Asian tsunami -- triggered by a 9.3-magnitude quake off Sumatra --
killed at least 168,000 people in Indonesia alone.
A 7.6-magnitude quake killed about 1,000 people in the port of Padang on September 30 last year.
- AFP/ir
JAKARTA - At least 23 people are dead and scores missing, including nine Australians, after a powerful earthquake hit Indonesia's west coast and triggered a tsunami, officials said Tuesday.
The 7.7-magnitude earthquake, which struck in the Mentawai Islands area west of Sumatra late Monday, caused waves as high as three metres (10 feet) that damaged residential areas in several islands.
A tsunami warning was issued after the quake and a group of Australian visitors reported that their boat was destroyed by a "wall of white water" crashing into a bay.
Rick Hallet, an Australian who operates a boat-chartering business in Sumatra, said he had 15 people on board his vessel in a bay off the islands when the quake struck.
"We felt a bit of a shake underneath the boat... then within several minutes we heard an almighty roar... I immediately thought of a tsunami and looked out to sea and that's when we saw the wall of white water coming at us," he said.
Arlyno, an official from the Disaster Management Agency, told AFP that 23 people were killed in the Mentawai islands and that 167 people had gone missing.
While remote, the Mentawai Islands are popular with tourists, especially surfers.
Health Ministry Crisis Centre head Mudjiharto, who goes by one name, said the waves reached three metres high and waters swept as far as 600 metres inland on South Pagai island, one of the Mentawai chain.
"Eighty percent of buildings in Muntei village have been damaged by the waves and many people are missing there," Mudjiharto said.
He said medical personnel were on their way to the hardest-hit areas.
Rescuers launched a hunt for a boat believed to be carrying a group of nine Australians which has been missing since the quake.
"We are sending a boat and a chartered plane to search for the boat," said Andrew Judge of SurfAid International.
It was reportedly not equipped with a satellite telephone but SurfAid's Dave Jenkins said its Australian captain Chris Scurrah had "been around here for a long time. He knew to contact in if he could. So that's why we're extra concerned."
The undersea quake hit at 9:42pm (1442 GMT) at a depth of 20.6 kilometres (12.8 miles), 240 kilometres west of Bengkulu on Sumatra island and 280 kilometres south of Padang, the US Geological Survey said.
"A significant tsunami was generated by this earthquake," said the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center. The warning was later withdrawn after the danger of further waves had passed.
The first tremor was followed by strong magnitude 6.1 and 6.2 aftershocks several hours later.
Hallet recounted his group's ordeal when the quake struck, with some climbing trees to survive.
"The bay we were in was several hundred metres across and the wall of white water was from one side to the other, it was quite scary," he told Fairfax Radio Network.
Another boat was anchored next to them, he said.
"The wave picked that boat up and brought it towards us and ran straight into us and our boat exploded, caught on fire, we had a fireball on the back deck and right through the saloon within seconds.
"I ordered everyone up to the top deck to get as high as possible, then the boat exploded and we had to abandon ship," he told Australia's Nine Network.
The group jumped into the water, some of them being swept 200 metres inland, and took shelter by climbing trees, waiting for 20 minutes to half an hour until the surges passed.
Eventually all the group, nine of whom were Australian, were accounted for, he said.
Residents reported shaking as far away as the West Sumatran provincial capital of Padang when the main quake struck.
Indonesia sits on the Pacific "Ring of Fire," where the meeting of continental plates causes high volcanic and seismic activity, and the archipelago is frequently struck by powerful earthquakes.
A 7.1-magnitude quake off the north coast of Papua in June killed 17 people and left thousands homeless.
The 2004 Asian tsunami -- triggered by a 9.3-magnitude quake off Sumatra --
killed at least 168,000 people in Indonesia alone.
A 7.6-magnitude quake killed about 1,000 people in the port of Padang on September 30 last year.
- AFP/ir
Major 7.7 quake strikes Indonesia
Posted: 26 October 2010 1341 hrs
JAKARTA: A major 7.7-magnitude earthquake struck off the west coast of Indonesia on Monday, seismologists said, causing localised waves in the remote area.
A tsunami warning was issued, and while it was later withdrawn and no casualties were confirmed, a group of Australian visitors reported that their boat was destroyed by a "wall of white water" crashing into a bay.
The undersea quake hit Indonesia's Kepulauan Mentawai region at 9:42 pm (1442 GMT) at a shallow depth of 20.6 kilometres (12.8 miles), the US Geological Survey said.
The Mentawai Islands, 240 kilometres west of Bengkulu on Sumatra island and 280 kilometres south of Padang, are popular with tourists.
Rick Hallet, an Australian who operates a boat-chartering business in Sumatra, had 15 people on board his vessel in a bay off the islands when the quake struck.
"We felt a bit of a shake underneath the boat... then within several minutes we heard an almighty roar... I immediately thought of a tsunami and looked out to sea and that's when we saw the wall of white water coming at us," he said.
"The bay we were in was several hundred metres across and the wall of white water was from one side to the other, it was quite scary," he told Fairfax Radio Network.
Another boat was anchored next to them, he said. "The wave picked that boat up and brought it towards us and ran straight into us and our boat exploded, caught on fire, we had a fireball on the back deck and right through the saloon within seconds.
"I ordered everyone up to the top deck to get as high as possible, then the boat exploded and we had to abandon ship," he told Australia's Nine Network.
The group jumped into the water, some of them being swept 200 metres inland, and took shelter by climbing trees, waiting for 20 minutes to half an hour until the surges passed.
Eventually the group, nine of whom were Australian, was accounted for, he said.
The 7.7 earthquake was followed by powerful magnitude 6.1 and 6.2 aftershocks about five and eight hours later in the same area.
Residents reported shaking as far away as the West Sumatran provincial capital of Padang relating to the earlier quake, but fears of widespread damage eased a few hours later.
"There was shaking that went on for about three seconds or so. Residents panicked and ran to the hills but now they are starting to come down. There's no report of casualties or damage," Disaster Management Agency spokesman Priyadi Kardono told AFP.
The Indonesian Geophysics and Meteorology agency lifted an earlier tsunami warning.
The power and shallow depth of the earthquake prompted the US-based Pacific Tsunami Warning Center to issue a "tsunami watch" bulletin to guide local authorities on how to respond but that was later cancelled.
Indonesia sits on the Pacific "Ring of Fire," where the meeting of continental plates causes high volcanic and seismic activity, and the archipelago is frequently struck by powerful earthquakes.
A 7.1-magnitude quake off the north coast of Papua in June killed 17 people and left thousands homeless.
The 2004 Asian tsunami -- triggered by a 9.3-magnitude quake off Sumatra -- killed at least 168,000 people in Indonesia alone.
A 7.6-magnitude quake killed about 1,000 people in the port of Padang on September 30 last year.
-AFP/wk
JAKARTA: A major 7.7-magnitude earthquake struck off the west coast of Indonesia on Monday, seismologists said, causing localised waves in the remote area.
A tsunami warning was issued, and while it was later withdrawn and no casualties were confirmed, a group of Australian visitors reported that their boat was destroyed by a "wall of white water" crashing into a bay.
The undersea quake hit Indonesia's Kepulauan Mentawai region at 9:42 pm (1442 GMT) at a shallow depth of 20.6 kilometres (12.8 miles), the US Geological Survey said.
The Mentawai Islands, 240 kilometres west of Bengkulu on Sumatra island and 280 kilometres south of Padang, are popular with tourists.
Rick Hallet, an Australian who operates a boat-chartering business in Sumatra, had 15 people on board his vessel in a bay off the islands when the quake struck.
"We felt a bit of a shake underneath the boat... then within several minutes we heard an almighty roar... I immediately thought of a tsunami and looked out to sea and that's when we saw the wall of white water coming at us," he said.
"The bay we were in was several hundred metres across and the wall of white water was from one side to the other, it was quite scary," he told Fairfax Radio Network.
Another boat was anchored next to them, he said. "The wave picked that boat up and brought it towards us and ran straight into us and our boat exploded, caught on fire, we had a fireball on the back deck and right through the saloon within seconds.
"I ordered everyone up to the top deck to get as high as possible, then the boat exploded and we had to abandon ship," he told Australia's Nine Network.
The group jumped into the water, some of them being swept 200 metres inland, and took shelter by climbing trees, waiting for 20 minutes to half an hour until the surges passed.
Eventually the group, nine of whom were Australian, was accounted for, he said.
The 7.7 earthquake was followed by powerful magnitude 6.1 and 6.2 aftershocks about five and eight hours later in the same area.
Residents reported shaking as far away as the West Sumatran provincial capital of Padang relating to the earlier quake, but fears of widespread damage eased a few hours later.
"There was shaking that went on for about three seconds or so. Residents panicked and ran to the hills but now they are starting to come down. There's no report of casualties or damage," Disaster Management Agency spokesman Priyadi Kardono told AFP.
The Indonesian Geophysics and Meteorology agency lifted an earlier tsunami warning.
The power and shallow depth of the earthquake prompted the US-based Pacific Tsunami Warning Center to issue a "tsunami watch" bulletin to guide local authorities on how to respond but that was later cancelled.
Indonesia sits on the Pacific "Ring of Fire," where the meeting of continental plates causes high volcanic and seismic activity, and the archipelago is frequently struck by powerful earthquakes.
A 7.1-magnitude quake off the north coast of Papua in June killed 17 people and left thousands homeless.
The 2004 Asian tsunami -- triggered by a 9.3-magnitude quake off Sumatra -- killed at least 168,000 people in Indonesia alone.
A 7.6-magnitude quake killed about 1,000 people in the port of Padang on September 30 last year.
-AFP/wk
Sunday, October 3, 2010
Earthquake hits central Japan
Posted: 03 October 2010 0851 hrs
TOKYO: A 4.7-magnitude quake hit areas some 200 kilometres (125 miles) north of Tokyo Sunday, but no tsunami warning was issued, Japan's meteorological agency said.
The quake hit Jetsu City and surrounding areas at 9:26am (0026 GMT) at a depth of 20 kilometres, the agency said.
Around 20 per cent of the world's most powerful earthquakes strike Japan, which has developed one of the most sophisticated tsunami warning systems.
Just a moment before the quake struck, warnings for a strong tremor were flashed across television screens.
There were no immediate reports of damage.
-AFP/wk
TOKYO: A 4.7-magnitude quake hit areas some 200 kilometres (125 miles) north of Tokyo Sunday, but no tsunami warning was issued, Japan's meteorological agency said.
The quake hit Jetsu City and surrounding areas at 9:26am (0026 GMT) at a depth of 20 kilometres, the agency said.
Around 20 per cent of the world's most powerful earthquakes strike Japan, which has developed one of the most sophisticated tsunami warning systems.
Just a moment before the quake struck, warnings for a strong tremor were flashed across television screens.
There were no immediate reports of damage.
-AFP/wk
Friday, October 1, 2010
Moderate quake jolts Taiwan
Posted: 01 October 2010 0939 hrs
TAIPEI: A 5.1-magnitude earthquake struck off northern Taiwan Friday, the island's Seismology Centre said, but there were no immediate reports of damage and no tsunami warning was issued.
The quake hit at 3:56 am (2156 GMT Thursday) 11 kilometres (seven miles) north of the city of Ilan at a depth of 102 kilometres.
Taiwan lies near the junction of two tectonic plates and is regularly hit by earthquakes.
In September 1999, a 7.6-magnitude quake killed around 2,400 people in the deadliest natural disaster in the island's history.
-AFP/wk
TAIPEI: A 5.1-magnitude earthquake struck off northern Taiwan Friday, the island's Seismology Centre said, but there were no immediate reports of damage and no tsunami warning was issued.
The quake hit at 3:56 am (2156 GMT Thursday) 11 kilometres (seven miles) north of the city of Ilan at a depth of 102 kilometres.
Taiwan lies near the junction of two tectonic plates and is regularly hit by earthquakes.
In September 1999, a 7.6-magnitude quake killed around 2,400 people in the deadliest natural disaster in the island's history.
-AFP/wk
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