Magnitude 6.4 Mw Areas affected Indonesia Aftershocks 6.3 Mw | Type Strike-slip Max. intensity VIII (Severe) Date 6 March 2007 | |
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Casualties 68 fatalities; over 460 serious injuries Similar 1938 Banda Sea earthquake, 2009 Papua earthquakes, 2016 Sumatra earthquake, 1992 Flores earthquake, September 2007 Sumatra | ||
The March 2007 Sumatra earthquakes occurred near the northern end of Lake Singkarak in Sumatra, Indonesia, on March 6. The first shock in this earthquake doublet struck with a maximum Mercalli intensity of VIII (Severe) and the second shock that arrived two hours later had a maximum Mercalli intensity of VI (Strong).
Contents
Earthquakes
The initial quake at 10:49 (03:49 UTC) measured 6.4 on the moment magnitude scale and the second quake at 12:49 (05:49 UTC) measured 6.3. The earthquakes were felt as far away as Singapore and Malaysia, which prompted the evacuation of some buildings there.
Effects
Over 60 fatalities and 460 serious injuries have been reported, spread across many towns and regencies in West Sumatra. Over 43,000 houses were damaged, with over 12,000 of those severely damaged. The severe damage to other structures includes over 130 public facilities, 310 mosques, 60 government buildings, 370 schools, and 230 shops. According to the governor of West Sumatra, Agam Regency is the worst affected area, though other areas including Solok Regency and Tanah Datar are also badly affected. The total value of damage is estimated to be around 1.4 trillion Indonesian rupiah (US$160 million).
Response
A variety of local and international aid organizations have deployed to the region to assist victims. A number of countries have pledged aid, including the Netherlands (US$2.0 million), Sweden (US$1.0 million), Canada (US$0.21 million), Malaysia (US$0.16 million), United States (US$0.1 million) and Taiwan (US$0.06 million). The US AID has supplied them with all sorts of essentials like blankets, water, food and first aid kits.