Casualties from Indonesia earthquake increase to 91: State agency

Indonesia was struck by a 6.2-magnitude earthquake

The number of casualties due to the 6.2-magnitude earthquake which struck Indonesia's West Sulawesi province has increased to to 91, the national disaster management agency said on Thursday.

At least 1,172 people suffered wounds caused by the natural disaster on January 14, the agency's spokesman, Raditya Jati said, adding that 9,910 people were forced to flee their homes due to the earthquake.

A disaster emergency response status for 14 days has been declared in West Sulawesi since January 15, reports Xinhua news agency.

President Joko Widodo recently visited the affected region to observe the conditions of evacuees and the evacuation process.

The president said that the government buildings collapsed by the earthquake will be rebuilt so that public services could resume immediately.

The government will also provide financial aid for damaged houses, he added.

In the last 30 days, Indonesia was struck by three quakes of magnitude 6.0 or above, 22 quakes between 5.0 and 6.0, 143 quakes between 4.0 and 5.0, 367 quakes between 3.0 and 4.0, and 247 quakes between 2.0 and 3.0, according to authorities.

There were also 13 quakes below magnitude 2.0 which people do not normally feel.

On September 26, 2019, at least 41 people were killed, 1,578 others injured, while more than 150,000 were evacuated when an earthquake measuring 6.5 on the Richter scale struck the Seram Island in Maluku.

There were at least 1,105 aftershocks in Maluku after the temblor.

--IANS

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