Environment
Quake kills 4 in Indonesia’s Papua province
Four people were killed on Thursday as a result of a magnitude-5.1 earthquake in Indonesia’s Papua province, an official said.
Residents had already retrieved the bodies of the four from the sea.
They had been in a waterfront cafe when the quake hit the provincial capital, Jayapura, and destroyed the building, according to Asep Khalid, the head of the local disaster management agency.
The shallow quake also damaged homes and other buildings, including the city’s largest shopping mall.
Patients at the Jayapura General Hospital were taken outside the building, Khalid said.
The quake struck at 3:28 p.m. (0828 GMT) at a depth of 10 kilometres, according to the national geophysics agency.
The agency said the city had been rocked by more than 1,000 earthquakes since Jan. 2.
“Indonesia sits on the Pacific Ring of Fire, an area known for volcanic eruptions and seismic upheavals,” said the agency.