More than 160 dead and hundreds injured after Indonesia earthquake

The death toll from a 5.6-magnitude earthquake in Indonesia has risen to 162 with hundreds more injured and over 13,000 people displaced, West Java governor Ridwan Kamil said.

The epicentre was said to be in the town of Cianjur, about 75km southeast of capital Jakarta.

The head of the country’s disaster agency BNPB announced that 700 had been injured from the earthquake and upto 300 homes had been damaged or destroyed.

The update came after a government official, Herman Suherman, had earlier said that at least 300 were injured, with this earlier figure from just one hospital.

He had pointed out that there were four hospitals in the area, in comments that indicate the casualties and those injured from the earthquake could rise.

Electricity was down in the area, something that was disrupting communications efforts, the official explained. He further said officials in the Cugenang area were unable to carry out evacuations because a landslide blocked access.

The magnitude 5.6 quake, centered in the Cianjur region in West Java province at a depth of 10km (6.2 miles), damaged dozens of buildings and sent residents into the capital’s streets for safety.

The quake was felt strongly in the greater Jakarta area. Some buildings in the national capital swayed, while some had to be evacuated, reported the Associated Press.

Shaking of several seconds was also felt in surrounding West Java areas like Sukabumi, Bogor and Bandung, reported The Straits Times.

Footage from the local Metro TV showed some buildings in Cianjur reduced to rubble and concerned residents crowding outside. Photos have shown intravenous drips being hooked on people who are being treated on sidewalks.

Dozens of buildings, including an Islamic boarding school and hospital, were damaged in the quake.

“The quake felt so strong. My colleagues and I decided to get out of our office on the ninth floor using the emergency stairs,” Vidi Primadhania, an employee in South Jakarta, was quoted as saying by the Associated Press.

At least 25 aftershocks were recorded in the aftermath of the earthquake, according to the country’s weather and geophysics agency, known as BMKG.

Data on casualties and damage was still being collected, the National Disaster Mitigation Agency said in a statement.

Indonesia lies on the Pacific “Ring of Fire”, which makes the country with a population of 270 million prone to quakes, volcanic eruptions and tsunamis.

It is, however, uncommon for earthquakes to be felt in Jakarta.