A magnitude 5.1 earthquake struck Indonesia’s Central Sulawesi province late Sunday, resulting in the death of a hospital patient during an evacuation and causing damage to residential and public structures.
According to the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysical Agency of Indonesia, the shallow quake occurred at 9:46 pm local time (1346 GMT) at a depth of 10 kilometres (6.21 miles), reports Anadolu.
The epicentre was identified in the Buol regency, with tremors also felt in neighbouring regions of Central Sulawesi and Gorontalo province.
Moh Khacfy Mardjun, the chief of the Buol Disaster Mitigation Agency, confirmed that preliminary assessments revealed damage to government buildings, a hospital, a restaurant, and various residential properties.
“Preliminary data shows damage to several public facilities and residential buildings. One patient at the regional hospital also died during the evacuation process,” Mardjun stated.
In the wake of the tremor, authorities are continuing their damage assessments while establishing temporary shelters and distributing emergency supplies to those affected.
