Most of the damage was caused by the buildings’ proximity to the earthquake's epicenter and their inferior construction.
Jakarta (ANTARA) - The construction quality of most buildings affected by the 6.6-magnitude earthquake in Banten Province on January 14, 2022, was below standard, therefore, many collapsed, according to the Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG).

"Most of the damage was caused by the buildings’ proximity to the earthquake's epicenter and their inferior construction," Coordinator for Seismology at BMKG Dadang Permana said during a webinar on the megathrust seismic gap in southern Banten Province and Sunda Strait here on Friday.

The affected areas were also located on soft soil, he added.

BMKG conducted macroseismic observations at 15 earthquake-affected locations, he informed.

The observations revealed that houses with good construction only suffered light damage, while buildings with poor construction got cracked and were destroyed, he said.

Related news: 6.6-magnitude quake in Pandeglang damaged houses in 30 sub-districts

Meanwhile, a soil characteristics survey at 10 locations showed that eight locations had medium soil, Permana informed.

Meanwhile, two locations, Sumur Sub-district and Panimbang Sub-district in Pandeglang District, had soft soil, he said.

According to the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB), 3,078 houses were damaged in the earthquake in Lebak, Pandeglang, Serang, Tangerang, Sukabumi, and Bogor districts.

The agency recorded 395 heavily damaged units, 692 moderately damaged units, and 1,991 lightly damaged units.

The earthquake, which was centered at 7.21 degrees latitude and 105.05 degrees east longitude, also damaged 51 school buildings, 17 health facilities, 8 government offices, 3 kiosks, and 21 worship places, it said.

The Disaster Mitigation Operations Control Center of BNPB noted that Pandeglang district suffered the most damage.

As of 10 p.m. Western Indonesian Standard Time (WIB) on January 18, 2022, as many as 379 homes had been recorded as heavily damaged, 581 homes as moderately damaged, and 1,764 homes as lightly damaged, according to the BNPB.

In addition, 43 school buildings, 16 community health centers, 4 village offices, 14 worship places, and 3 kiosks had been reported damaged, it informed.

Most of the damaged buildings were located in Sumur Sub-district, Pandeglang District, which experienced VI-VII Mercalli Modified Intensity (MMI) shocks, it said.

Furthermore, two people were reported to have suffered serious injuries and eight others were slightly injured in the quake, it added.

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Translator: Desi Purnamawati, Uyu Liman
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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