JAKARTA (Reuters) – At least 56 people were killed after an earthquake hit Indonesia’s West Sulawesi region on Friday, the disaster relief agency (BNPB) said on Sunday, the latest in a series of accidents to hit Southeast Asian country.
More than 820 people were injured and about 15,000 people were displaced after the 6.2 magnitude earthquake, the BNPB said. Some sought shelter in the mountains, while others went to confined evacuation centers, witnesses said.
Dwikorita Karnawati, head of Indonesia’s geology, climate and geophysics (BMKG) group, has said another earthquake in the region could trigger a tsunami.
Crossing the Ring of Pacific Fire, Indonesia is regularly hit by earthquakes. In 2018, a devastating magnitude 6.2 magnitude earthquake and subsequent tsunami hit the city of Palu, Sulawesi, killing thousands.
Just two weeks into the new year, the fourth largest country in the world is once again battling a number of disasters.
Floods in the Sulawesi North and South Kalimantan region each have killed at least five people this month, while landslides in the West Java region have killed at least 28, authorities said .
On January 9, the Sriwijaya Air jet crashed into the Java Sea with 62 on board.
Mount Semeru East Java erupted late Saturday, but no casualties or evacuations were reported.
Dwikorita said extreme weather and other “multiple hazards” of hydrometeorology are expected in the coming weeks.