Badan Geologi AS Sebut Pusat Gempa Bengkulu di Kedalaman 35 Km
Strong 6.4 Earthquake Hits Indonesia`s Sumatra: USGS
Editor : Ismail Gani
Translator : Novita Cahyadi
GEMPA berkekuatan 6,4 skala Richter melanda Bengkulu Utara, Sumatera pada Minggu namun tidak ada risiko tsunami, kata seismolog dari Badan Meteorologi, Klimatologi dan Geofisika (BMKG) setelah warga panik meninggalkan rumah mereka.
Pusat gempa berada di kedalaman 35 kilometer pada pukul 10:08 waktu setempat sekitar 73 kilometer sebelah barat Bengkulu, menurut Survei Geologi Amerika Serikat (USGS).
"Gempa cukup kuat dan dangkal, sampai ke Padang, Sumatera Barat, tapi tidak ada ancaman tsunami," kata Kepala Pusat Gempa Bumi dan Tsunami BMKG Mochammad Riyadi.
Dia mengatakan petugas memeriksa apakah ada korban jiwa atau kerusakan akibat gempa tersebut.
Warga Bengkulu Neng Hasnah mengatakan, gempa tersebut terasa sangat kuat selama beberapa detik, memaksa dia dan keluarganya untuk melarikan diri dari rumahnya.
"Saya membawa cucuku yang berumur tujuh bulan dan saya harus lari, semua tetangga juga berlari keluar rumah," kata Hasnah.
Indonesia berada di kawasan 'Cincin Api' Pasifik dimana lempeng tektonik bertabrakan, menyebabkan aktivitas seismik dan gunung berapi yang kerap terjadi.
Gempa melanda propinsi Aceh bagian barat pada Desember 2016, menewaskan lebih dari 100 orang, melukai lebih banyak lagi dan menyebabkan puluhan ribu orang kehilangan tempat tinggal seperti dikutip AFP yang dilansir MailOnline.
A STRONG 6.4-magnitude earthquake hit off the Indonesian island Sumatra on Sunday but there was no tsunami risk, seismologists said as panicked residents fled their homes.
The quake hit at a depth of 35 kilometres (22 miles) at 10:08 am (0308 GMT) 73 kilometres west of Bengkulu, according to the United States Geological Survey.
"The earthquake was quite strong and shallow, it was felt all the way to Padang, West Sumatra, but there was no threat of a tsunami," Mochammad Riyadi, an official at Indonesia's meteorology and geophysics agency told AFP.
He said officials were checking if there were any casualties or damage.
Bengkulu resident Neng Hasnah said the quake felt very strong for a few seconds, forcing her and her family members to flee her house.
"I was carrying my seven-month old granddaughter and I had to run, all the neighbours also ran outside their homes," Hasnah told AFP.
Indonesia sits on the Pacific "Ring of Fire" where tectonic plates collide, causing frequent seismic and volcanic activity.
An earthquake struck Indonesia's western Aceh province in December 2016, killing more than 100 people, injuring many more and leaving tens of thousands homeless.
