INDONESIA: Relatives start to bury Sumatra earthquake victims

Indonesia's Sumatra island was pounded by aftershocks on Thursday (September 13) after a massive earthquake toppled hundreds of buildings, killing at least 10 people and burying many others in the wreckage. In Padang terrified residents evacuated their homes and ran for higher ground and roads were jammed with cars and mopeds as people sought to escape. Aid agencies have pledged cash and rushed teams to assess damage and help the injured. They said they were impressed with the speed of the evacuation from coastal areas as tsunami warnings were repeatedly issued and lifted for Indian Ocean countries after the magnitude 8.4 quake and subsequent tremors. Officials said at least 10 people had died. Some aid staff said the toll could be rise as people were still trapped under rubble. Rescue workers pull out at least one body out of a collapsed building in Padang, located off the west coast of Indonesia's Sumatra island A Reuters witness there said a four-storey car showroom had collapsed, trapping several staff. At least one body was carried away from the rubble and loaded onto an ambulance as horrified residents watched the rescue operation. The earthquake -- the biggest anywhere in the world this year -- was followed over the next 18 hours by 22 tremors in the same area ranging in intensity from 4.9 to 7.8. The initial quake, which took place on the eve of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, and was felt in neighbouring Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand, cut communication lines and sparked widespread panic in the hours that followed. The roads in north Bengkulu were lined with tents as many residents feared more quakes and did not want to return to their damaged homes. The coastal city of about 300,000 people was the closest major town to the epicentre of the quake The vice governor said that 10 people had died and at least 20 were injured in his province, where damage to homes and infrastructure was extensive. Nearly 800 houses collapsed and many more were damaged, but the full extent of the damage was still unknown because of the difficulty of travelling to or contacting some areas. Indonesia suffers frequent quakes, as it lies on an active seismic belt on the so-called Pacific "Ring of Fire". A huge earthquake measuring more than 9 on the Richter scale struck the same area of Indonesia on December 26, 2004, causing a massive tsunami and more than 280,000 deaths in countries across the Indian Ocean region.

ITN Source | September 13, 2007

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