NATURAL DISASTER/ EARTHQUAKE - JAKARTA. A 63-year-old man from Rawang village in Batang Barus district, Solok regency, West Sumatra, was killed in an earthquake that hit the area on Saturday.
“Bustami [the victim], affectionately known as Buyuang Jenggo, was resting at home after washing his garlic harvest, with his wife and child, when the earthquake struck and he was crushed by a collapsed wall,” said village head Syamsul Azwar.
The Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) recorded the earthquake at 5.4 on the Richter scale with the epicenter about 15 kilometers west of Solok city.
Local administration has reported no other casualties so far, although many buildings are presumed damaged.
Meanwhile, in neighboring Danau Kembar district, two residents were injured, 10 houses were heavily damaged and two houses burned down.
BMKG head Rahmat Triyono explained in a press statement that the earthquake was a result of tectonic movement along the a Solok section of the seismically active Great Sumatran fault.
He also mentioned that that the earthquake was felt as far as Padang city, the capital of West Sumatra, which is 54 km away.