One Dead after 5.4 Magnitude Quake Shakes Indonesia’s West Sumatra

Jakarta, MINA — A 63-year-old man died on Saturday (July 21) after a 5.4 magnitude earthquake shook the Solok regency in Indonesia’s West Sumatra, The Straits Times reported.

The Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) recorded the earthquake at 5.4 on the Richter scale with the epicentre about 15km west of Solok city.

BMKG head Rahmat Triyono said in a statement that the quake was a result of a tectonic movement along the Solok section of the seismically active Great Sumatran fault.

He said the earthquake was felt as far as Padang city, the capital of West Sumatra, located 54km away.

The quake victim, identified as Bustami, was a resident of Rawang village in Solok’s Batang Barus district.

He was resting at home after washing his garlic harvest with his wife and child and died after being crushed by a collapsed wall, said village head Syamsul Azwar.

No other casualties have been reported so far, the local administration said, although many buildings are presumed to be damaged.

In the neighbouring Danau Kembar district, two residents were injured.

Ten houses were heavily damaged and two houses burned down as a result of the temblor. . (T/RS5/RS1)

Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA)