35 Dead, Hundreds Injured As Earthquake Hits Indonesia

Earthquake has killed at least 35 people and injured hundreds on Indonesia’s island of Sulawesi on Friday, January 15, trapping several under rubble and unleashing dozens of aftershocks.

It was gathered that, thousands of frightened residents fled their homes for higher ground when the magnitude 6.2-quake struck 6 km (3.73 miles) northeast of the town of Majene, at a depth of just 10 km, shortly before 1.30 a.m.

The quake and aftershocks damaged more than 300 homes and two hotels, as well as flattening a hospital and the office of a regional governor.

Video footage on social media showed collapsed houses and a girl pinned under rubble calling for help.

The situation was “pretty bad”, Dr Gayatri Marliyani, of the geology department at Gajah Mada University in Yogyakarta, told the BBC. She said the governor’s office was among the collapsed buildings and confirmed that several hospitals and one hotel had also been damaged.

She also warned that getting response teams to the area could be hampered by the coronavirus pandemic.