The Jakarta Globe, October 22, 2013.
Banda Aceh. An elderly man died, two women sustained serious injuries and dozens of houses were damaged after a magnitude 5.6 earthquake jolted Aceh on Tuesday afternoon.
Apriyadi, the chairman of Pidie district’s Disaster and Mitigation Agency, said that the victim was identified as 90-year-old Abubakar Rasyid, a resident of Mane subdistrict.
“The victim was not killed by debris from the earthquake,” Apriayadi told the Jakarta Globe. “He died because of a heart attack. He probably went into shock, because the earthquake was quite strong.”
The two injured women — who have not been identified — live in Tangse subdistrict. During the earthquake, they were struck by falling pieces of rubble as they tried to escape their home.
Both have been taken to the Sigli Hospital in Pidie district.
Apriyadi said that temporary data showed 89 houses suffered damage. Thirty-nine were severely damaged.
“Residents whose houses were badly damaged are temporarily living with their neighbors or relatives,” Apriyadi said, adding that he had requested tents from the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BMPB).
Some sections of the road heading to Lubok Badeuk village, in Tangse subdistrict, were completely destroyed.
“Lubok Badeuk is the village that was worst affected by this afternoon’s earthquake” Apriyadi said.
Before the earthquake struck, the residents of the village witnessed the water receding and started to panic.
“The residents started to worry and fled to the mosque,” he said. “When Aceh was hit by the 2004 tsunami, the sea water started to recede before the wave struck the land. The river has since returned to normal, and people have returned to the village.”
The earthquake, which hit the region at 12:40 p.m., was felt by residents in Banda Aceh, Aceh Besar district, Pidie Jaya district and Bireuen districts. It was centered 16 kilometer southwest of Aceh Besar and 10 meters deep.
People fled their houses and offices during the 30-second long earthquake.
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di 22 okt 2013 - 18:32