Powerful Indonesian quake kills 11; dozens injured

By ANTHONY DEUTSCH, Associated Press Writer

JAKARTA, Indonesia – A powerful earthquake rattled a large swath of southern Indonesia on Wednesday, killing at least 11 people, injuring dozens and causing extensive damage to houses and buildings.

The quake struck at 2:55 p.m. (0755 GMT) off the southern coast of the main island of Java with a preliminary magnitude of 7.0. It had a depth of about 30 miles (50 kilometers), the U.S. Geological Survey said. A tsunami alert was issued, but revoked less than an hour later.

Some of the victims were killed in a rock slide near the southern coast of Java island, while the others died when houses or buildings collapsed, disaster officials said.

Hospitals across the region were admitting scores of injured people.

"We all ran out in panic, we didn't even put our sandals on," said Muharaham Ardan, a university lecturer in the town of Tasikmalaya, about 70 miles (115 kilometers) from the epicenter.

Ardan said it was the biggest quake he had ever felt. "The neighbors were shouting: 'Get out of the house! Get out of the house!'"

At least 10 people died in the southern Cianjur district of West Java, and another in the coastal village of Pelabahan Ratu where dozens of buildings were severely damaged, said National Disaster Management Agency spokesman Satrio Nurhadiwibowo.

"A dozen houses were buried by a landslide triggered by the earthquake in Jeblong village," Nurhadiwibowo said.

The shaking was felt over roughly half of Java island, where the majority of the country's population of 235 million live.

In the capital, Jakarta, more than a hundred miles (160 kilometers) away, panicked office workers ran onto the streets.

Health Ministry Crisis Center chief Rustam Pakaya said at least 27 people were admitted to the hospital in Jakarta and the number of injured was rising.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said the quake was powerful enough to cause a local tsunami, but there were no immediate reports of high waves. "Sea level readings indicate a significant tsunami was not generated," the center later said in a statement retracting the alert.

Indonesia, a vast archipelago, straddles continental plates and is prone to seismic activity along what is known as the Pacific Ring of Fire. A huge quake off western Indonesia caused a powerful tsunami in December 2004 that killed around 230,000 people in a dozen countries.