At least one person has died and at least others 25 have been injured after a magnitude 5.8 earthquake that shook the north of the Indonesian island of Sumatra this Saturday, official sources reported.
The Indonesian Agency for Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics (BMKG) said in a statement that the earthquake occurred in the northern region of the Tapanuli province, in North Sumatra, and left at least one dead, who died after suffering a heart attack.
In addition, the authorities reported that at least other 25 people were injured and that “several residents have suffered head injuries and are receiving intensive care”.
The earthquake, whose initial magnitude was encrypted at 6.0 but later downgraded to 5.8, occurred at 2: 28 pm local time at a depth of ity of 10 kilometers and, according to BMKG, “had no potential for a tsunami”.
According to the Indonesian authorities, after the initial earthquake there were almost 80 aftershocks, of various magnitudes and which were felt “moderate to strong during three to five seconds” in various locations, which led to a wave of “panic” among residents.
The series of tremors made “people panic and run out of their houses . Shortly after the earthquake, the electricity went out”, said BMKG.
In photos and videos released by the emergency services, several injured people can be seen receiving medical attention, and various material damages to buildings, infrastructure and housing.
So far, damages have been accounted for in 143 residences, eight government buildings, eleven bridges and a health center, in addition to power outages in some of the most affected areas.
The authorities They also reported a fire, now controlled, in a local market due to multiple short circuits as a result of the damage caused by the tremors.
Indonesia sits on the so-called Pacific Ring of Fire, an area of great seismic and volcanic activity in which about 7 000 earthquakes are recorded each year, most of them moderate.