Thu, September 03, 2009
JAKARTA, Sept. 2 (Xinhua) -- The death toll has risen to 25 following the 7.3-magnitude earthquake in west Indonesia's Java on Wednesday night, leaving 25 others missing and 112 others injured, according to the national Antara news agency.
The deaths recorded in Cianjur regency reached 12 as the highest in the province, and 8 in Tasikmalaya, one in Bandung, one in Sukabumi and three in Garut, according to the National Disaster Management Agency, .
Most of the victims died when buildings crushed in the earthquake.
Hundreds of people got injured in the debris. They are receiving treatment at regional hospitals.
The earthquake struck at 2:55 p.m. (0755 GMT) with epicenter monitored at 142 km southwest of West Java and at a depth of 30 km, the country's meteorology agency said.
The disaster caused panic in some cities for potential of tsunami, but no tsunami has occurred.
Indonesia, with a population of over 230 million, sits on a vulnerable quake-hit zone, called "the Pacific Ring of Fire," where two continental plates meet, stretching from western hemisphere to Japan, which causes frequent seismic and volcanic movements.
