TEMPO.CO, Sumedang, West Java - The 4.8-magnitude earthquake in Sumedang district on Sunday evening damaged 248 houses and forced 456 residents to seek refuge elsewhere, acting West Java Governor Bey Triadi Machmudin said on Monday, January 1, 2024.

Speaking to local journalists after visiting Sumedang Public Hospital, he said that the shallow quake did not cause any fatalities, but left 11 people injured. Two of the injured are currently being treated at two hospitals, while the other nine have returned home.

Providing details on the damaged homes, he said that 138 units suffered mild damage, while 110 others were seriously damaged in the quake.

The quake on Sunday evening forced medical personnel at Sumedang Public Hospital to evacuate 108 patients to the hospital's front and back yards, Machmuddin said.

The safety of all patients is a priority, and though they have been moved out of their rooms, they are receiving good medical care, he added.

The epicenter of the shallow earthquake that struck Sumedang on Sunday evening was located at a depth of five kilometers.

The Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) reported two aftershocks following the quake. The aftershocks did not cause any damage.

According to the head of the agency's Earthquake and Tsunami Center, Daryono, the magnitude 4.8 quake was a "shallow crustal earthquake," which was triggered by the movement of an active fault in the area.

The Sumedang earthquake may be associated with the Cileunyi-Tanjungsari fault, he added.

In the past, an earthquake of magnitude 4.5 jolted Sumedang district on December 19, 1972. The shallow quake damaged many houses and triggered a landslide in the Cibunar neighborhood area, Daryono informed.

The Sumedang quake caused damage to buildings because its epicenter was located at a depth of five kilometers, he explained.

Earthquakes regularly rock several parts of Indonesia since the country lies on the Circum-Pacific Belt, also known as the Ring of Fire, where several tectonic plates meet and cause frequent volcanic and seismic activities.

On December 26, 2004, Aceh, the country's westernmost province, experienced the deadliest earthquake ever on record. The quake had a magnitude of 9.3 and was followed by a tsunami.

The catastrophe, which also affected certain coastal areas in countries such as Thailand, Sri Lanka, and India, reportedly killed at least 230 thousand people in Aceh.

ANTARA

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