6.4 magnitude earth quake hits indonesia’s sumatra

Jakarta: A strong 6.4-magnitude quake struck Indonesia’s Sumatraon on Saturday, US seismologists said. 
The epicenter was close to the remote archipelago of Mentawai. In 2010, a 7.7-magnitude quake triggered a tsunami that left more than 400 people dead on the island chain. Suharjono, an official from the local meteorology, climatology and geophysics agency who goes by one name, said that Saturday’s quake was unlikely to have caused damage and there was no threat of a tsunami.

It came after a 6.1-magnitude inland tremor on Tuesday struck Aceh, on Sumatra’s northern tip, flattening buildings and sparking landslides in the mountainous interior of the natural disaster-prone province.

So far 35 people have been confirmed dead from Tuesday’s quake and some 16,000 left homeless, according to the national disaster agency.

In 2004, a quake-triggered tsunami left more than 170,000 people dead in Aceh, as well as tens of thousands more in countries around the Indian Ocean. Indonesia sits on the Pacific ‘Ring of Fire’ where tectonic plates collide, causing frequent seismic and volcanic activity.