STILL BREAKING

-- tywe (tywe@earthlink.com), June 04, 2000

Answers

This one, off of Sumatra? 7.9 on the Richter scale...

http://www.newsday.com/ap/topnews/ap810.htm

-- Deb M. (vmcclell@columbus.rr.com), June 04, 2000.

Fair use, for educational purposes:

Tsunami Feared Off Island Sumatra

WASHINGTON (AP) -- A great earthquake, capable of causing massive damage, struck Sunday off the Indonesian island Sumatra, and the U.S. Geological Survey said it was likely to have caused a tsunami.

The survey's Carolyn Bell said the quake was measured at magnitude 7.9 and occurred at 11:28 p.m. local time, or 12:28 p.m. EDT.

The shock was felt strongly at Benjkulu, 70 miles north-northeast of the epicenter, where it could have caused ''major structural damage,'' she said. It also was felt as far away as Jakarta, the capital, 335 miles north-northwest of the center.

Bell said the epicenter was 33 kilometers -- almost 20 miles -- beneath the Earth's surface, very shallow in geological terms.

''It set up a possible tsunami situation in the area of the Indian Ocean, where there are no warning systems,'' she said. ''If tsunami were going to happen, it has already happened.''

A tsunami is a massive wave caused by an earthquake or volcanic eruption.

Eleven minutes after the original shock, an aftershock was recorded at magnitude 6.7, Bell said.

Both the first quake and the aftershock were larger than the largest temblor in recent years in the area. In 1995, a 6.4 earthquake occurred there.

-- Deb M. (vmcclell@columbus.rr.com), June 04, 2000.

Deb, thanks for the alert!

-- Flash (flash@flash.hq), June 04, 2000.

http://volcano.und.edu/cgi-bin/big_search.cgi?keywords=Sumatra

Looks likes it's a "happening place", at least geologically speaking. Considering that Krakatoa isn't too far off, I'm surprized that it didn't happen sooner.

-- Deb M. (vmcclell@columbus.rr.com), June 04, 2000.

Sure, Flash, you're welcome. Earth sciences have always piqued my curiosity, so I'm glad to do a little research. God help the poor people over in Indonesia though...

-- Deb M. (vmcclell@columbus.rr.com), June 04, 2000.

there was a 6.3 in pakistan.

-- tywe (tywe@earthlink.com), June 04, 2000.

There have been seven earthquakes today that are 5.3 or larger!! Go to http://www.geo.ed.ac.uk/quakexe/quakes for an up to the minute list. Sorry I don't know how to link..Margo

-- Margo (margos@bigisland.com), June 04, 2000.

Massive 100 foot tidal wave headed towards Sri Lanka, millions will perish.

-- (foretold@by.prophecy), June 04, 2000.

-- hoping (to link@earthquakes.com), June 04, 2000.

< a href=http://www.geo.ed.ac.uk/quakexe/quakes>
-- hoping2 (link about @quakes.com), June 04, 2000.

linkaroo

-- kritter (kritter@adelphia.net), June 04, 2000.

Reuters Story:

Link

-- News Man (newsman@all.the.news.con), June 04, 2000.

Earthquakes in many places, fish raining from the sky....hmmm

-- cin (cin@cin.cin), June 05, 2000.

A little more info on the destruction & death toll revised:

Link

-- Deb M. (vmcclell@columbus.rr.com), June 05, 2000.

Sorry! Here's the URL + the entire article:

http://wire.ap.org/?SLUG=INDONESIA%2dEARTHQUAKE

Earthquake Shakes Sumatra, 58 Dead

By GEOFF SPENCER Associated Press Writer

---------------------------------------------------------------------- ---------- JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP)  At least 58 people died and 500 were injured in a powerful earthquake that lasted for minutes in the Indonesian island of Sumatra and was followed by dozens of strong aftershocks today.

Widespread panic was reported in Bengkulu, a province of about 1.2 million people near the tremor's epicenter, as rescuers dug through the rubble of ruined buildings in search of bodies and trapped survivors.

Ali Muchtar, Bengkulu health department chief, said 58 people were confirmed dead  a total that was expected to rise. Almost 500 people had been reported injured, 255 seriously.

The quake hit at 11:29 p.m. Sunday and was centered beneath the Indian Ocean, about 60 west of Bengkulu city, which has about 250,000 residents. The Indonesian Meteorological and Geophysical Service said the quake measured magnitude 7.3. The U.S. Geological Survey in Golden, Colo., estimated the strength at 7.9.

The quake lasted several minutes and shook a wide area. A magnitude 6 aftershock hit 11 minutes afterward, and 53 smaller tremors were recorded before 6 a.m. today.

``The quake went on for many minutes. Dozens of homes have been destroyed and almost all houses and buildings in the city seem to have been damaged,'' said Bengkulu police Sgt. Hariyono. ``People are terrified every time they feel aftershocks.''

Thousands fled their homes. Witnesses reported widespread panic in Bengkulu and said hospitals were overwhelmed with injured people. Electricity and water supplies had been cut. Many phone lines were down.

``Many houses have collapsed and the walls on bigger buildings have been fractured. I helped save three of my neighbors who were trapped under rubble,'' said Edy, a resident who like many Indonesians uses only one name.

Doctors in Bengkulu treated the injured in the open, fearing aftershocks might bring down the state hospital, the official Antara news agency reported.

Medical supplies were running low. Antara reported that some doctors had been forced to perform minor operations without anesthetics.

The city's airport was closed because of damage to its communications equipment and passenger terminal. Some roads to the city had ben blocked by landslides.

President Abdurrahman Wahid offered no immediate emergency response, saying instead that his government had to assess the problem.

The quake, one of the strongest recorded in Indonesia in recent years, was felt across much of western half of the archipelago nation and the neighboring island state of Singapore.

The U.S. Geological Survey said the quake's epicenter was about 20 1/2 miles beneath the floor of the Indian Ocean  very shallow in geological terms. But there were no immediate reports of a tsunami, a massive wave caused by an earthquake or volcanic eruption.

In December 1992, a magnitude-7 earthquake caused a tsunami that killed about 2,500 people on the southeastern island of Flores. A magnitude-7 earthquake is capable of causing widespread and heavy damage in urban areas.

Indonesia, the world's biggest archipelago nation, sits on major fault lines and is prone to frequent seismic upheavals.

-- Deb M. (vmcclell@columbus.rr.com), June 05, 2000.