...the quake did not have potential to cause tsunami."Banda Aceh (ANTARA News) - Hundreds of people were wounded as a powerful earthquake rocked Central Aceh and Bener Meriah districts in Aceh province on Tuesday afternoon.
"Hundreds of quake victims have been hospitalized, with some of them treated in open space," local resident Iwan Bahagia said when contacted from the Aceh provincial capital of Banda Aceh on Tuesday evening.
The quake also disrupted communication networks to affected areas.
The quake measuring 6.2 on the Richter scale rocked Bener Meriah and Central Aceh districts at 02.37 p.m. local time on Tuesday, according to the head of Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) office in Banda Aceh, Syahnan.
However, the quake did not have the potential to cause a tsunami.
Syahnan said the epicenter of the quake was located at 4.70 degrees northern latitude and 96.61 degrees eastern longitude or 35 kilometers southwest of Bener Meriah at a depth of 10 kilometers.
Spokesman of the Central Aceh district administration Mustafa Kamal said the district was hit the hardest by the quake.
The Bener Meriah District Disaster Mitigation Board (BPBD) said five people were wounded and 10 houses were damaged in the quake.
The board said it kept monitoring developments in the field to see the number of victims and the extent of damage caused by the temblor.
Fakhruddin, an activist of non-governmental organization Redelong Institute, said a child was killed after his house was buried by landslide.
At least 20 people of Bener Meriah district were treated at a local health service post for light and serious injuries after debris of their houses fell on them, he said.
Fakhruddin said seven houses in Lampahan sub-district collapsed, forcing scores of people to evacuate to the nearest mosque.
(Reporting by Azhari/S012)
Editor: Priyambodo RH
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