Indonesia struck by a 7.8 magnitude earthquake
After Haiti, Chile, Taiwan and Turkey, A 7.8 magnitude earthquake hit the Northwest Indonesian island of Sumatra at 05:15 a.m. The U.S. Geological Survey said that the center was 125 miles northwest of Sibolga in Sumatra. Depth of the earthquake was measured at 31 miles. The epicenter was 215 km from the largest city on Sumatra, Medan. Three aftershocks were recorded after the initial earthquake.
The earthquake caused mass panic and power outages but fortunately there were no deaths. 80% of the electricity terminals in North Sumatra province were damaged. 25% percent were restored immediately. Several Injuries were noted from falling roof tiles, broken glass and damage electricity poles
A tsunami alert was issued but was lifted two hours after. Neighboring countries Thailand and Malaysia also announced tsunami warnings but cancelled them shortly after they were issued. Even though, the tsunami warnings have been lifted, several are still taking precautions in case a tsunami hits.
Earthquakes are frequent in Indonesia. Sumatra is along the of the world’s most active seismic fault lines, the Pacific “Ring of Fire.” In September 2009, A 7.6 magnitude earthquake hit the city of Padang killing more than 1000 people. In December 2004, a 9.5 magnitude earthquake in Aceh caused a Tsunami that killed 226,000 in Indonesia, India, Thailand, Sri Lanka and nine other countries.
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