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Jolie Rouge
03-28-2005, 09:22 AM
LONDON (Reuters) - An 8.2 magnitude earthquake struck in the sea off the coast of Sumatra at 1609 GMT, the U.S. Geological Survey told Reuters on Monday.

A USGS spokeswoman said the quake struck 125 miles west northwest off Sibolga, Sumatra or 880 miles northwest of the Indonesian capital of Jakarta, close to where a 9.0 December quake triggered a devastating Tsunami in Asia.

The USGS spokeswoman could not say if the quake would trigger a Tsunami.


03/28/05 11:59

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Jolie Rouge
03-28-2005, 02:28 PM
Hundreds May Be Dead in Indonesia Quake
By MICHAEL CASEY

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BANDA ACEH, Indonesia (AP) - A major earthquake struck late Monday off the west coast of Indonesia, and police said hundreds of people may have been killed in collapsed buildings. Thousands panicked in countries across the Indian Ocean as tsunami warnings were posted.

Fears of another catastrophe similar to December's devastating tsunami eased within hours, as officials in countries closest to the quake's epicenter said there were no reports of big waves striking their coasts after the temblor was reported.

Early reports of damage and casualties were confined to the island of Nias, off the Sumatran coast. About 70 percent of houses and building in the market in the town of Gunungsitoli on the island had collapsed, said police Sgt. Zulkifli Sirait. ``We still cannot count the number of casualties or the number of collapsed building because it is dark here,'' Sirait said in a telephone interview. ``It is possible that hundreds of people trapped in the collapsed buildings died.''

The Indonesian government said the quake had ``claimed several lives'' on the island.

The U.S. Geological Survey said the quake, which occurred at 11:09 p.m. local time (11:09 a.m. EST), measured a magnitude of 8.2. A later reading put the magnitude at 8.7, said Paul Earle, a USGS geophysicist.


03/28/05 16:27

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Jolie Rouge
03-28-2005, 02:29 PM
Official: 50 dead on island after quake
'Small' tsunami detected in Indian Ocean after 8.7 temblor
Monday, March 28, 2005 Posted: 4:01 PM EST (2101 GMT)

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The earthquake was centered off Sumatra on the same fault line as the December 26 temblor.[/cnter]


(CNN) -- Fifty people were killed and about 300 homes were destroyed on the island of Nias, near the epicenter of a massive earthquake that struck off the coast of Indonesia on Monday, a government official there told CNN.

About 100 people were injured, and many others were believed buried under rubble, Agus Mendrova said.

Between 10,000 and 15,000 people were running about 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) to hilltops for safety in case of a tsunami, he said.

Meanwhile, a tidal gauge has detected a small tsunami in the Indian Ocean several hundred miles southwest of the earthquake.

The U.S. Geological Survey reported that an instrument near the Cocos Islands recorded the passing wave, but the magnitude of the "small" tsunami was not clear.

The agency said no major tsunami has been observed near epicenter of the earthquake which was upgraded from a magnitude of 8.2 to 8.7. An aftershock measuring 6.0 struck 30 minutes after the initial quake.

Scientists say the threat of a tsunami striking Indonesia and Thailand may have passed because a wave like the one that hit the region on December 26 would have reached those countries almost immediately. Monday's quake struck at 11:09 a.m. ET (1609 GMT).

Officials in Kuala Lumpur issued an official tsunami warning for the west coast of Malaysia and the east coast of Sumatra. The warning has a six-hour window, and is based on the December earthquake, which struck at 9 a.m. local time and was followed four hours later by the tsunami.

A damaging tsunami is still possible and should be "presumed," said Robert Cessaro of the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center. The quake may have sent its energy further to the south than last year's quake, which measured above 9 and ruptured to the north, he said.

"So all that pressure to the north would have been relieved" by that quake, said Cessaro. "We think this event probably ruptured to the south, with the beam of energy probably propagated to the south toward Mauritius and the Rodrigues."

Residents of coastal regions around the Indian Ocean have been rapidly evacuating after the earthquake .

In Thailand, thousands of people in the six provinces affected by the December 26 tsunami were moving to higher ground or 2 kilometers (1.25 miles) inland, the governor of Phang Nga province said.

Sri Lanka also issued a warning that the earthquake may spawn a tsunami that would reach Sri Lanka's shores by about 3 a.m. Tuesday (4 p.m. ET Monday) and urged those living in low lying areas to move to higher ground.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has recommended residents within 1,000 kilometers (620 miles) of the epicenter evacuate coastal regions.

The quake was centered on the same fault line where the December 26 earthquake launched a tsunami that killed at least 175,000 people.

There was a report of heavy damage on Simeulue Island in Indonesia, said Bernd Schell, head of tsunami operations for the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies.

Prass Prawoto, an aid worker in Banda Aceh -- which was severely damaged by the December 26 tsunami and quake -- said Indonesians were moving to higher ground, fearing a repeat of the earlier tsunami. But, he said, he had not heard of any injuries.

CNN producer Kathy Quiano, watching television reports from Jakarta, said there was widespread panic in Banda Aceh, as residents rushed inland. Electricity and phone service were out in major sections of the city.

A number of traffic accidents occurred as a result, and people were injured, she said, citing local television reports. "People are closely watching for the water that may come in," she said.

Charles McCreary, director of the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center, said scientists believed another tsunami is possible, but he could not be certain if the quake, which was 203 kilometers (126 miles) from Sibolga on Sumatra Island, would cause another deadly wave.

U.S. ready to help

The United States is moving into "battle mode" in the wake of the quake, alerting all the U.S. posts in the region and reaching out to aid workers, State Department spokesman Adam Ereli said. "We're applying what we've learned from the previous earthquake, so that we can be prepared to be responsive quickly and in a meaningful way," he said.

USGS spokesman Doug Blake said there had been no reports of tsunami activity nearly 90 minutes after the quake struck. "At this point in time we don't know what type of fault occurred ... and that is critical information we just don't have yet," he said. "It is in the aftershock zone of the December 26 quake. It's a little bit south, but it's on the same fault."

Experts agreed the quake was massive. The U.S. Geological Survey put the magnitude at 8.7; the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said it was 8.5. "This earthquake has the potential to generate a widely destructive tsunami in the ocean or seas near the earthquake," NOAA said in a statement on its Web site. "Authorities in those regions should be aware of this possibility and take immediate action."

Asked whether evacuations are taking place, U.S. Geological Survey spokesman Don Blakeman said, "I certainly hope so."

A 'great' quake

The quake is considered a "great" earthquake, the largest of seven grades. The grades are very minor, minor, light, moderate, strong, major and great.

Tsunamis are distinguished from normal coastal surf by their great length and speed. A single wave in a tsunami series might be 160 kilometers (100 miles) long and race across the ocean at 960 kph (600 mph).

When it approaches a coastline, the wave slows dramatically, but it also rises to great heights because the enormous volume of water piles up in shallow coastal bays.

The December 26 quake triggered a massive tsunami that devastated coastlines in nearly a dozen nations in Africa and Asia.

http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/asiapcf/03/28/indonesia.quake/index.html

Jolie Rouge
03-28-2005, 02:32 PM
296 Dead in Indonesia Quake, Official Says
By MICHAEL CASEY

BANDA ACEH, Indonesia (AP) - A major earthquake struck late Monday off the west coast of Indonesia, and a local government official said 296 people were killed in collapsed buildings. Thousands panicked in countries across the Indian Ocean as tsunami warnings were posted.

Fears of another catastrophe similar to December's devastating tsunami eased within hours, as officials in countries closest to the quake's epicenter said there were no reports of big waves striking their coasts after the temblor was reported.

Early reports of damage and casualties were confined to the island of Nias, off the Sumatran coast, close to the epicenter. The quake collapsed about 70 percent of houses and buildings in the town of Gunungsitoli, said police Sgt. Zulkifli Sirait.


Agus Mendrofa, deputy district head on Nias island, told el-Shinta radio station that 296 people were killed. He said this figure was based on reports from humanitarian workers on the island. ``We still cannot count the number of casualties or the number of collapsed building because it is dark here,'' Sirait said in a telephone interview. ``It is possible that hundreds of people trapped in the collapsed buildings died.''


Nias, a renowned surfing spot, was badly hit by the 9.0 earthquake and subsequent tsunami on Dec. 26 that killed at least 175,000 people in 12 Indian Ocean nations and left another 106,000 missing. At least 340 residents of Nias perished and 10,000 were left homeless.

The U.S. Geological Survey said Monday's quake, which occurred at 11:09 p.m. local time (11:09 a.m. EST), measured a magnitude of 8.2. A later reading put the magnitude at 8.7, said Paul Earle, a USGS geophysicist.


A tsunami warning was issued in Thailand and Sri Lanka, although officials later canceled it. The only tsunami reported within four hours was a tiny one - less than 4 inches - at the Cocos Islands, a group of 27 islands about 1,400 miles west of Australia with a population of about 600, meteorologists in Sydney said. No damage was reported. ``It seems this earthquake did not trigger a tsunami. If it had, the tsunami would have hit the coastline of Sumatra by now,'' said Prihar Yadi, a scientist with the Indonesia Geophysics Agency. ``And if there's no tsunami on the coastline near the epicenter of the quake, there will not be one heading in the other direction.''

Indonesian officials said the epicenter was in the Indian Ocean about 56 miles south of the island of Simeulu, off Sumatra's west coast, and just north of Nias. It was described by a USGS geologist as an aftershock of the devastating Dec. 26 quake.

Preliminary indications are that energy from the quake might be directed toward the southwest, said Frank Gonzalez, an oceanographer with the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration in Seattle. He stressed it was based on ``very scanty information'' about the epicenter and magnitude.


Monday's quake had an epicenter about 110 miles southeast of where the Dec. 26 quake was centered. The USGS said it occurred on a segment of the same fault line that triggered the Dec. 26 quake, the world's biggest in 40 years.


Two aftershocks - one measuring 6.0 and another measuring 6.7 - were reported in the same region late Monday and early Tuesday, the USGS said.


The quake occurred at a depth of 18.6 miles, and was centered 125 west-northwest of Sibolga, Sumatra, and 150 miles southwest of Medan, Sumatra, the USGS said.


The depth does not mean a lot for a quake this large, Earle said, calling it a near-surface earthquake and comparable to the one in December. After that quake, the agency initially recorded the depth of the temblor at six miles. Shallow earthquakes like that generally are more destructive because the seismic energy is closer to the surface and has shorter to travel.


Monday's quake was considered to be at a moderate depth.


The Dec. 26 quake triggered a huge tsunami that swept across the Indian Ocean at the speed of a passenger jet. More than 1.5 million people were left homeless in 11 countries.


In Banda Aceh, the Sumatran city hit hardest in December, Monday's quake spread panic as it briefly cut electricity. Thousands were awakened and poured into the streets.


The quake lasted about two minutes and felt like gentle swaying, like a rocking chair, causing people to feel dizzy.


People grabbed small bags of clothes as they fled tents and homes. Many were crying and jumping into cars and onto motorbikes and pedicabs to head for higher ground. Two women wearing prayer shawls and sarongs grabbed a fence and chanted ``Allahu akbar,'' or ``God is great.'' ``People are still traumatized, still scared, they are running for higher ground,'' said Feri, a 24-year-old aid volunteer who goes by one name.


Panic gripped at least one relief camp in Banda Aceh. An Associated Press photographer saw thousands fleeing their tents - but with nowhere to go, they milled in crowds along the road. Police with megaphones coaxed people back to their tents.


Warning sirens blared along Sri Lanka's east coast, the government urged people to evacuate immediately to higher ground, and all night trains traveling along the coast were suspended.


The Sri Lankan military was put on full alert and several naval ships monitored the coast, said military spokesman Brig. Daya Ratnayake. Fishermen at sea were warned not to return to shore.


President Chandrika Kumaratunga called an emergency meeting at her home with Cabinet members and went on state TV to assure the country ``we are taking all precautionary measures.''


Low-lying coastal areas in Malaysia's northern states also were evacuated.


On Dec. 26, the tsunami crashed onto coastlines in Indonesia's Aceh province within 45 minutes of the massive earthquake hitting offshore, but Sri Lanka was hit several hours later after the waves traveled the breadth of the Indian Ocean.


In Washington, State Department deputy spokesman Adam Ereli said U.S. diplomatic missions in Asia and Africa went into ``battle mode'' to respond quickly to any contingency.


The quake was felt as far away as Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore, more than 435 miles from the epicenter.


In Malaysia, panicked residents of Kuala Lumpur and Penang fled their apartments and hotels after authorities activated fire alarms. Police evacuated low-lying coastal areas of the northern states of Penang and Kedah. ``I was getting ready for bed, and suddenly, the room started shaking,'' said Kuala Lumpur resident Jessie Chong. ``I thought I was hallucinating at first, but then I heard my neighbors screaming and running out.''


Singapore residents of high-rise apartments reported buildings swayed.


Slight tremors were felt in the Thai capital of Bangkok, and officials issued a tsunami warning in southern Thailand, where more than 3,000 died in December. Officials later said the danger appeared to have passed.


Japan's Meteorological Agency, which also recorded the quake, reportedly notified six Indian Ocean countries - Thailand, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India, the Maldives and Malaysia - about a possible tsunami.


NOAA spokesman Greg Romano said the U.S. State Department passed warnings to foreign governments.


Officials said after the December disaster that a tsunami early warning system could have saved many lives. Such a system exists in the Pacific but has not been established in the Indian Ocean.


Japan and the United States had planned to start providing tsunami warnings to countries around the Indian Ocean this month as a stopgap measure until the region establishes its own alert system.



03/28/05 17:10

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Jolie Rouge
03-28-2005, 08:47 PM
3/28/2005 9:47 PM

Major earthquake off Indonesia may have killed thousands

BANDA ACEH, Indonesia (AP) — A powerful earthquake struck off Indonesia's west coast late Monday, killing hundreds of people whose homes collapsed on them and spreading panic across the Indian Ocean that another killer tsunami was on the way. Indonesia's vice president predicted up to 2,000 deaths.

Fears of a second tsunami catastrophe in just over three months eased within hours, as officials in countries at risk reported their coasts clear of the type of earthquake-spawned waves that ravaged a dozen countries in Asia and Africa on Dec. 26.

Almost all the deaths reported after the 8.7-magnitude quake were on Indonesia's Nias island, a popular surfing spot off Sumatra island's west coast and close to the epicenter. Police were pulling children's' bodies out of the rubble of collapsed houses, and a fire was reportedly raging in one town. "It is predicted — and it's still a rough estimate — that the numbers of dead may be between 1,000 and 2,000," Vice President Jusuf Kalla told the el-Shinta radio station, saying the estimate was based on an assessment of damage to buildings.

Two people were also killed in Sri Lanka during a panicky evacuation from the coast in a Tamil rebel-held area, authorities said.

The U.S. Geological Survey said the quake struck about 19 miles under the seabed, some 155 miles south-southeast of Banda Aceh, the capital of Aceh province on Sumatra island. It was centered just 110 miles southwest of December's 9.0-magnitude temblor — the world's most powerful in 40 years.

Monday's wallop, although very powerful, was but a fraction of the earlier quake. In explosive power, December's quake was equal to 100 million pounds of TNT; it caused the seabed to spring up as much as 60 feet.

Terrified of a disaster of equal proportions, sirens sounded throughout the region as authorities issued tsunami alerts for six countries after the quake struck at 11:06 p.m. as many people were sleeping.

Women clutching children ran into the darkened streets of Banda Aceh, crying and chanting "Allahu Akbar," or "God is Great." Others grabbed small bags of clothes and fled their tents and homes for higher ground.

Another man rushed instead to the local mosque, saying "Where can I go, you can't outrun a tsunami."

The quake lasted two minutes and briefly cut electricity in Banda Aceh. Thousands poured into the streets, where flickering campfires and motorbike and car headlights provided the only lighting.

People grabbed small bags of clothes as they fled their tents and homes. Many were crying and jumping into cars and onto motorbikes and pedicabs to head for higher ground. Two women wearing prayer shawls and sarongs grabbed a fence to steady themselves. "People are still traumatized, still scared, they are running for higher ground," said Feri, a 24-year-old aid volunteer who goes by one name.

In Sri Lanka, warning sirens blared along the island nation's east coast and President Chandrika Kumaratunga urged people to evacuate immediately to higher ground. "It was like reliving the same horror of three months ago," said Fatheena Faleel, who fled her home with her three children after seeing the warning on television.

In Malaysia, residents fled their shaking apartments and hotels. "I was getting ready for bed, and suddenly, the room started shaking," said Jessie Chong, a resident of the largest city, Kuala Lumpur. "I thought I was hallucinating at first, but then I heard my neighbors screaming and running out."

The quake was felt as far away as Singapore and the Thai capital, Bangkok, more than 435 miles from the epicenter.

Nias island was badly hit on Dec. 26, when at least 340 residents were killed and 10,000 were left homeless.

The devastation there from Monday's quake appeared to be far worse.

Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said early Tuesday he would fly to the stricken island to assess the damage for himself.

In the town of Gunungsitoli, about 70% of buildings collapsed in the market district, officials said. "Hundreds of buildings have been damaged or have collapsed," said Agus Mendrofa, the island's deputy district head. He told el-Shinta radio station that at least 296 people had died in Gunungsitoli.

The MISNA missionary news agency in Rome, Italy, reported that a huge fire was raging early Tuesday in Gunungsitoli. "From the window I see very high flames," MISNA quoted Father Raymond Laia as saying by telephone about two miles from the town. "The town is completely destroyed. I repeat, the town is completely destroyed."

Another police officer, who identified himself as Nainggolan, said rescuers were trying to pull people out of the rubble, and that many were still panicking because of several aftershocks. "We are busy now trying to pull people or bodies of children from the collapsed building," said Nainggolan, who like many Indonesians uses only one name. "It is very hard also because there is no power."

"The situation here is really messy," he said. "Aftershocks keep hitting every half hour making thousands of people flee their homes and afraid to go home."

U.S. State Department deputy spokesman Adam Ereli said U.S. diplomatic missions in Asia and Africa went into "battle mode" to respond quickly to any contingency. Authorities worldwide had been slow to recognize the magnitude of the Dec. 26 disaster, which killed at least 175,000 people in 12 Indian Ocean nations and left another 106,000 missing.

Preliminary indications were that energy from Monday's quake might be directed toward the southwest, said Frank Gonzalez, an oceanographer with the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration in Seattle.

The only tsunami reported was a tiny one — 10 inches — at the Cocos Islands, 1,400 miles west of Australia. No damage was reported.

Officials said after the December disaster that a tsunami early warning system could have saved many lives. Such a system exists in the Pacific but has not been established in the Indian Ocean. Japan and the United States had planned to start providing tsunami warnings to countries around the Indian Ocean this month as a stopgap measure until the region establishes its own alert system.

Charles McCreery, director of the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Hawaii, said the organization was able to disseminate its bulletins to more nations Monday than it could in the Dec. 26 tsunami. Although the center does not have any gauges in the Indian Ocean, it has established better communication with several nations and government agencies, he said.

But for residents of ravaged Banda Aceh, no warning system was needed after they felt the quake and headed for higher ground.

At the city's biggest refugee camp, a voice on loudspeaker later announced that there was no tsunami. This time, the voice said, people could return to their tents.

www.usatoday.com/news/world/2005-03-28-indonesia-quake_x.htm?POE=NEWISVA


Major quakes of past 20 years

Dec. 26, 2004: Indian Ocean, magnitude 9; more than 174,000 people killed, another 106,000 missing.

Dec. 26, 2003: Southeastern Iran, Bam, magnitude 6.5; more than 26,000 killed.

May 21, 2003: Northern Algeria, magnitude 6.8; nearly 2,300 killed.

March 25, 2002: Northern Afghanistan, magnitude 5.8; up to 1,000 killed.

Jan. 26, 2001: India, magnitude 7.9; at least 2,500 killed. Estimates put death toll as high as 13,000.

Sept. 21, 1999: Taiwan, magnitude 7.6; 2,400 killed.

Aug. 17, 1999: Western Turkey, magnitude 7.4; 17,000 killed.

Jan. 25, 1999: Western Colombia, magnitude 6; 1,171 killed.

May 30, 1998: Northern Afghanistan and Tajikistan, magnitude 6.9; as many as 5,000 killed.


Jan. 17, 1995: Kobe, Japan, magnitude 7.2; more than 6,000 killed.


Sept. 30, 1993: Latur, India, magnitude 6.0; as many as 10,000 killed.

June 21, 1990: Northwest Iran, magnitude 7.3-7.7; 50,000 killed.


Dec. 7, 1988: Northwest Armenia, magnitude 6.9; 25,000 killed.


Sept. 19, 1985: Central Mexico, magnitude 8.1; more than 9,500 killed.

Source: The Associated Press.

Jolie Rouge
03-28-2005, 08:58 PM
Scientists Puzzled : No Tsunami After Quake
By JAYMES SONG

EWA BEACH, Hawaii (AP) - Tsunami experts could not understand why Monday's forceful earthquake off Indonesia failed to produce massive waves similar to those generated by the Dec. 26 quake that killed at least 175,000 people in the same region.

A magnitude 8.7 quake shook Indonesia's west coast, killing hundreds of people and spreading panic that another devastating tsunami was on the way.

There was no tsunami, but a small wave was detected by a tide gauge on Cocos Island near Australia, about 1,500 miles south of the epicenter, according to the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center on Oahu. ``I'm baffled an earthquake this size didn't trigger a tsunami near the epicenter,'' said Robert Cessaro, a geophysicist at the center, which is operated by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. It is responsible for monitoring seismic and ocean conditions in the Pacific and alerting Pacific Rim nations and U.S. agencies,


Center Director Charles McCreery said earthquakes of at least 8.0 magnitude usually generate major tsunamis. ``We expected some destructive tsunami with some distant destructive effects. It was surprising,'' he said.


The latest event also demonstrated ``there's a whole world of uncertainty about trying to judge a tsunami based on the earthquake data,'' he said.


The warning center initially estimated the Dec. 26 earthquake to have a magnitude of 8.0, but it turned out to be larger, with a magnitude of 9.0.


Monday's preliminary estimate was magnitude 8.5 but had no destructive tsunami. ``The one we initially thought was bigger turns out to have no effect,'' McCreery said. ``The one we initially thought was smaller had a huge effect. This is the challenge of tsunami warning.''


The warning center, established in 1949, came under heavy criticism following the December tsunami for not being more aggressive about warning Asian nations and possibly saving thousands of lives.


Earlier this month, a group of 58 European tsunami survivors and relatives of victims sued NOAA and other agencies, alleging the center did not do enough to warn people about the disaster. ``Although we certainly wish that somehow the event unfolded in a way that we could've done more for the region, we really did all we could under the circumstances,'' McCreery said.


Since then, several Indian Ocean nations have established communications with the center and are now on its alert list. On Monday, the facility was able to alert those nations.


The Indian Ocean has no warning center similar to the one in Hawaii.


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On the Net:


Pacific Tsunami Warning Center: http://www.prh.noaa.gov/ptwc/



03/28/05 22:16

Jolie Rouge
03-30-2005, 08:46 PM
Earthquake Reported Off Indonesia Island
By CHRIS BRUMMITT

GUNUNG SITOLI, Indonesia (AP) - Firefighters freed a man trapped in a crumpled house on remote Nias island on Wednesday, 36 hours after he was buried in rubble. As the first foreign military help arrived, officials said an estimated 1,000 people had died in the region's latest large earthquake.

Later, a magnitude-6.3 quake was reported off the west coast of northern Sumatra, the U.S. Geological Survey in Golden, Colo., said. The quake, which occurred about 19 miles underground, was in the same region as Monday night's temblor. There were no immediate reports of a tsunami warning being issued or of any casualties or damages.

The quake, which was one of at least four aftershocks felt in the last 24 hours, was centered about 170 miles south of Banda Aceh. Residents there did not feel any shaking. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Honolulu said no tsunami warning was issued.

Residents in Nias island's main town of Gunung Sitoli swarmed over collapsed buildings, searching frantically for survivors of the country's second catastrophe in three months, after December's massive quake and tsunami.


French firefighters from the agency Firefighters Without Borders - who rushed to the island from Aceh province's west coast - used a car jack to free the legs of 25-year-old television repairman Jansen Silalalahi, who had been pinned between a motorbike and a cupboard.


As he was lifted out of the rubble of what was once a three-story building, Silalalahi smiled weakly and gave a thumbs-up. ``People knew I was there but it was difficult to reach me. I kept screaming whenever I heard anyone,'' said Silalalahi, who did not appear to be badly injured. ``I feel relief because now I am safe.''


The improvised rescue highlighted the crisis situation officials face here: there are thousands of collapsed buildings and no machinery to help search the rubble for survivors.


The town's hospital was barely functioning: It lacked power or water, and it had no fuel for generators. ``We know there are many people critically injured,'' said Dr. Norman Peeler, a medical coordinator from the World Health Organization. ``It is essential they get treatment, infections spread easily in open wounds.''


Two Singaporean military helicopters landed Wednesday and distributed food and water to a frantic crowd of survivors. They also delivered a car, medical supplies, generators and 20 Singaporean troops and medics. A third helicopter was unable to touch down because there were so many survivors at the landing area.


Parts of Banyak island appeared to have sunk by up to 3 feet, leaving some coastal homes inundated with sea water, Aceh province's acting governor Azwar Abubakar said. But despite previous reports, there were no confirmed deaths on the island, he said in televised comments.


Monday's 8.7-magnitude quake struck off Indonesia's Sumatra island, some 75 miles north of Nias. The even-bigger quake that generated the region's devastating tsunami on Dec. 26 hit an area further northwest along the Sumatran coast.


The latest quake initially raised fears of another tsunami and sent people scrambling for high ground in several Indian Ocean countries lashed by December's killer waves, but no big waves materialized.


North Sumatra Gov. Rizal Nurdin estimated that 1,000 people died in the latest disaster, but officials feared the number could climb to 2,000. Bodies were still being discovered in the ruins of houses and shops on Wednesday and laid out in front of churches and mosques.


The confirmed death toll was put at 518, with 500 of those on Nias, according to United Nations official Masood Hyder, following a survey by U.N. staff.


Looting broke out in at least one location on Nias when men, women and children scrabbled through a two-story store and left with boxes of noodles, clothes and a television set. ``There is no water, electricity or rice. Things are getting tough, we have had no help so what can we do?'' asked Marzuki Tanjung, who was not among the looters.


Andi Malarangeng, a spokesman for President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, said the president would visit Nias island on Thursday. Indonesia ``welcomes and is open to all kind of assistance, including help from foreign troops, to assist in the disaster zone,'' Malarangeng told The Associated Press.


Australia and Japan were also planning military relief operations.


Japan said Wednesday it would send an 11-member emergency medical team and $140,000 worth of blankets, generators, sleeping pads and tents. Australia dispatched two military transport planes with medical supplies, and diverted a transport ship to the new disaster zone.


U.N. agencies were trying to coordinate deliveries of food, fresh water and medical supplies by helicopter. The agencies have stockpiles of supplies in the region to help feed and care for survivors of the Dec. 26 quake and tsunami, which killed more than 126,000 on Sumatra and left about half a million homeless.


Gunung Sitoli's main mosque was turned into a morgue for 21 Muslim victims. At a makeshift clinic outside the mosque, volunteers were running out of supplies. ``I have not slept since the earth began to shake,'' said Dr. Lucas Sapto, an Indonesian volunteer who was treating children with cuts on their faces.


At a Buddhist temple, about 20 bodies were laid out in the tropical heat. ``We are waiting for a hearse. Once it comes, I can bury my daughter and two grandchildren,'' said Lukmin, a 74-year-old Chinese Indonesian Buddhist, who, like many in this country, uses only one name.


Nias appeared to have borne the brunt of the quake, but details of casualties on neighboring islands were sketchy. ``We have to be careful in counting,'' said Budi Atmaji Adiputro, chairman of Indonesia's Coordinating Agency for National Disaster Relief, adding, ``We just have to count when we have seen the bodies.''



03/30/05 14:16

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Jolie Rouge
03-31-2005, 08:28 AM
Quake 'worse than expected'
Thursday, March 31, 2005



http://i.a.cnn.net/cnn/2005/WORLD/asiapcf/03/31/indonesia.quake/story.nias.boy.jpg
A young boy, aged four, is carried by his mother after receiving bad injuries from the earthquake.


(CNN) -- Aid efforts to earthquake-ravaged Sumatra are being hampered by the level of destruction, amid reports the situation is worse than expected on the hardest-hit island of Nias.

Many of the roads on the island are impassable and the only link to the airport is cut, restricting the delivery of urgently needed aid, which is starting to arrive on the island 48 hours after the quake struck.

Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono arrived on the devastated island Thursday. He and his wife Kristiani Herawati visited a mosque and prayed with a Catholic priest at a church being used as a makeshift morgue, The Associated Press reported.

About 600 people have been confirmed dead in Nias from Monday's 8.7 magnitude tremor, but that toll is expected to rise substantially as the extent of the destruction and injuries become apparent.

Late Wednesday night, a strong jolt rocked the west coast of Sumatra island, 48 hours after Monday's quake.

While some people slept in churches and mosques overnight, most residents opted to sleep outside in the rain, rather than inside, CNN's Hugh Riminton reported from the scene.

Australian military aircraft have begun flying additional medics and supplies to the region as the island's only hospital was all but destroyed.

Little or no electricity and fuel is forcing doctors to tend to the injured, many suffering compression and crush injuries, without power. "Reports that I've had in now overnight are, I must admit, pretty bad," Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer told Australia's ABC Radio Thursday.

"There's no doubt about this being a significant humanitarian crisis and the Indonesians have deployed resources very quickly, but we're obviously ready to provide additional assistance if it's needed and it may very well be needed," Downer said.


Indonesia said it "is open to all kinds of assistance, including help from foreign troops, to assist in the disaster zone," a spokesman for the President told The Associated Press.

Smell hangs over town

The smell of decomposing bodies is hanging over the main town, Gunungsitoli, which has been all but obliterated, Riminton says.

In the absence of machinery, residents are using their hands to dig through the debris to search for survivors. For those left alive, it is becoming a battle just to survive.

Helicopters from the Singapore Air Force landed in a sports stadium in Gunungsitoli, but a crowd looted supplies soon after they were unloaded. This prompted the U.N.'s operations officer to order no more landings in the stadium.

Three Chinook helicopters ferried out the most critically injured people Wednesday morning, although more casualties continued to arrive for evacuation.


In Washington, U.S. officials said the USNS Mercy hospital ship has been ordered to remain in the Indonesia area to help with earthquake relief. It is expected to reach Nias in about six days from its current station near East Timor.

Indonesian officials estimate that, overall, at least 1000 people are dead following the quake, but expect that toll could rise to 2000.

Monday's epicenter was about 60 miles (100 kilometers) south of the December 26 quake which triggered devastating tsunami waves and left an estimated 300,000 people either dead or missing.


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