Wednesday, July 19, 2006

Wederom treft zware beving Jakarta

Strong earthquake rattles Indonesian capital
Report: No risk of a tsunami from latest quake

Wednesday, July 19, 2006; Posted: 9:51 a.m. EDT (13:51 GMT)

Employees sit outside their buildings in Jakarta after the quake caused tall structures to sway.


JAKARTA, Indonesia -- A strong earthquake has rattled the Indonesian capital of Jakarta, just days after a major quake triggered a deadly tsunami in the region.

There were no immediate reports of damage or casualties from Wednesday's 6.2 magnitude quake.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said there was no risk of a tsunami.

"It's so small and so deep that there is no tsunami hazard," geophysicist Gerard Fryer told Reuters in Washington.

The quake was centered 40 kilometers (24 miles) beneath the Sunda straits, said Budi Waluyo, according to an official at Indonesia's meteorological office.

It struck 190 kilometers (118.07 miles) southwest of Jakarta, The Associated Press quoted the official as saying.

On Monday, a tsunami triggered by a magnitude 7.7 quake smashed into fishing villages and resorts on Indonesia's Java island has reached 525 with 273 people missing, officials said. (Full story)

More than 35,000 people have been displaced, Indonesia's department of social affairs said on Wednesday, adding that hundreds of buildings were destroyed.

Most of the deaths are believed to have been caused by the tsunami. Monday's quake generated waves more than 3 meters high (10 feet) high.

Officials said the remaining victims likely died in the initial quake, as opposed to the aftershocks, or during the crowded rush for higher ground as the ocean waves approached, officials said.

The International Tsunami Information Center issued a tsunami watch after the quake rumbled in the Indian Ocean 350 kilometers (220 miles) south of Jakarta