PADANG, Indonesia — A powerful earthquake that struck western Indonesia trapped thousands of people under collapsed buildings — including hospitals, a hotel and a classroom, officials said. At least 200 bodies were found in one coastal city, and the toll was expected to be far higher.
Wednesday’s temblor started fires, severed roads and cut power and communications to Padang, a city of 900,000 on Sumatra island’s coast. Thousands fled in panic, fearing a tsunami.
The undersea quake of 7.6 magnitude was followed this morning by a shallow inland quake centered 150 miles south of Padang with a preliminary magnitude of 6.8, the U.S. Geological Survey said.
Shallow, inland earthquakes generally are more destructive, but there were no immediate reports of damage or injuries.
On Wednesday, buildings had swayed hundreds of miles away in neighboring Malaysia and Singapore.
In Padang, shaking was so intense that people crouched or sat on the street to avoid falling. An exodus of thousands tried to get away from the coast in cars and motorbikes.
At least 500 buildings in Padang collapsed or were badly damaged, said Disaster Management Agency spokesman Priyadi Kardono, adding that 200 bodies had been pulled from the rubble there. The extent of damage in surrounding areas was still unclear due to poor communications, he said.
Hundreds of people were trapped under collapsed buildings in Padang, and thousands were believed trapped throughout the province, said Rustam Pakaya, head of the Health Ministry’s crisis center.
“This is a high-scale disaster,” Health Minister Siti Fadilah Supari told Metro TV.
Members of the Cabinet were preparing for the possibility of thousands of deaths.
