Officials say the toll could rise as civilians may still be trapped in the debris
The death toll has risen to 56 so far on the Indonesian island of Java from today’s 5.6-magnitude earthquake, while hundreds more have been injured.
“According to the latest information, 56 people have been killed…Almost 700 people have been injuredHerman Schwerman, a government official from Siangjur, the city in West Java where the epicenter of the earthquake is located, according to the US Geological Survey (USGS), told the MetroTV news channel.
MetroTV aired footage showing hundreds of injured to receive medical attention in a hospital parking lot.
Commercial shops, a hospital and an Islamic boarding school in the city have suffered significant damage from the earthquake, and a landslide has also been triggered, according to local media.
Media published photos of several buildings in Siangjur, whose roofs have collapsed.
Officials say the toll could rise as civilians may still be trapped in the debris.
“We are asking people to stay out of buildings for the time being as there may be aftershocks,” Indonesia’s meteorological agency director Dvikorita Karnawati told reporters.
As provincial governor Ridwan Kamil told reporters today, the death toll is likely to rise further from the current 56 as rescuers have yet to reach areas cut off by the landslides.
As Shuerman said, relatives of the victims have gathered at the hospital in Sayang City.
“At the moment we are dealing with people who are in an emergency situation in this hospital. Ambulances are still coming to the hospital from the villages. There are many families in villages who have not been evacuated,” he said.
The country’s disaster management chief, Suhariado, said at least 14 people had been killed in Siangjur but that information was “still evolving”.
Siangjur police chief Donny Hermawan told Metro TV that authorities rescued a woman and a baby from a landslide, but a third resident was found dead.
The quake was felt as far away as the capital, Jakarta, where panicked residents took to the streets and skyscrapers were shaken by the quake.
RES-EMP
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