Deadly earthquake hits Indonesia’s Sulawesi island

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At least three people have died and 24 been injured after a 6.2 magnitude earthquake struck Indonesia’s Sulawesi island, the country’s disaster mitigation agency said on Friday.

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The epicentre of the quake was six kilometres (3.73 miles)northeast of the city of Majene, at a depth of 10 kilometres.

Several thousand panicked residents fled their homes to seek safety after the quake, which did not trigger a tsunami warning but was felt strongly for about seven seconds, the statement said.

The disaster mitigation agency said a hotel and the office of the West Sulwesi governor were severely damaged, and electricity supplies were also down.

Hours earlier, a 5.9 magnitude earthquake struck in the same district on Thursday, damaging several houses.

Straddling the so-called Pacific ‘ring of fire’, Indonesia, a nation of high tectonic activity, is regularly hit by earthquakes.

In 2018, a devastating 6.2 magnitude quake and subsequent tsunami struck the city of Palu, in Sulawesi, killing thousands of people.

(REUTERS)

Source: Thanks france24