Jakarta (VNA) – At least 13 people died and hundreds of others were injured after a 6.4-magnitide earthquake shook the Indonesian island of Lombok on early July 29.
The Meteorological, Climatological and Geophysical Agency of Indonesia recorded more than 120 aftershocks with the biggest at 5.7 magnitude. No tsunami alert was issued.
Local officials have declared a three day state emergency. A temporary ban on the Mount Rinjani trekking was issued as well.
The quake also damaged thousands of homes. Some 200 people from 35 families whose houses were damaged or destroyed have pitched tents in Sembalun village.
According to the Malaysian foreign ministry, one Malaysian was killed and six injured.
“All of them were at the foot of Mount Rinjani when the incident happened,” it said.
Indonesia, an archipelago of thousands of islands, sits on the Pacific Ring of Fire, a seismic activity hotspot.
It is frequently hit by quakes, most of them harmless. However, the region remains acutely alert to tremors that might trigger tsunamis.
In 2004 a tsunami triggered by a magnitude 9.3 undersea earthquake off the coast of Sumatra in western Indonesia killed 220,000 people in countries around the Indian Ocean, including 168,000 in Indonesia.-VNA
VNA