JAKARTA: A powerful earthquake struck off the west coast of Indonesia’s Sumatra island early on Monday and was felt strongly in some areas, including the city of Padang, though there were no immediate reports of casualties or damage, officials said.
The magnitude 6.7 quake, which struck at 04:09 local time (21:09 GMT on Sunday), did not have the potential to cause a tsunami, the head of Indonesia’s geophysics agency (BMKG) Dwikorita Karnawati said.
The European Mediterranean Seismological Center (EMSC) had put the strength of the earthquake near Kepulauan Batu at 6.8 magnitude, at a depth of 40 km (24.85 miles).
The Indonesian BMKG agency described the quake as feeling like a “truck passing through” in some areas, and said there had been four aftershocks with the biggest of magnitude 6. Padang is about 1,000 kilometers north west of capital Jakarta.
So far officials had not received any information on damage, but were still assessing the impact in some remote areas including north Sumatra’s Nias Selatan, where communications were difficult, an official said.
Indonesia suffers frequent earthquakes, straddling the so-called “Pacific Ring of Fire,” a seismically active zone where different plates of the earth’s crust meet.
The fault along Sumatra island can be particularly active and dangerous. In 2004, a massive 9.1 magnitude quake and a tsunami off the northern tip of Sumatra killed 226,000 people in Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India, Thailand and nine other countries.
Last month, a magnitude 6.1 earthquake in the area killed at least 10 people, the local disaster mitigation agency in West Sumatra said.
Strong quake strikes off Indonesia, no tsunami potential seen
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Strong quake strikes off Indonesia, no tsunami potential seen
- The Indonesian Meteorology and Geophysics Agency said the quake was felt in many parts of the province but there was no danger of a tsunami
Eight taken to hospital after gunfire at Sydney's Bondi beach
Australian police said on Sunday two people were in custody after reports of gunshots and injuries at Sydney's Bondi Beach.
"The police operation is ongoing and we continue to urge people to avoid the area," New South Wales police state in a post on X.
The Sydney Morning Herald said multiple people had been injured, while television networks Sky and ABC aired footage showing people lying on the ground.
Videos circulating on X appeared to show people on Bondi Beach scattering as multiple gunshots and police sirens can be heard. Reuters could not immediately verify the footage.
"We are aware of an active security situation in Bondi. We urge people in the vicinity to follow information from NSW Police," said a spokesperson for Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.
Australian emergency workers said Sunday they had rushed eight people to hospitals after a shooting at Sydney's famed Bondi beach.
"We can just let you know that we have treated multiple people on the scene and at this stage taken eight people to different Sydney hospitals," a spokesperson for the New South Wales ambulance service told AFP.
No figures were immediately available for any fatalities.
