Quake hits Bali, hurts 7
BALI, Indonesia (AP) – A strong earthquake shook the popular Indonesian resort island of Bali early Saturday, injuring at least seven people and sending panicked tourists and residents fleeing out of homes and hotels.
No tsunami warning was issued and there were no immediate reports of major damage.
The magnitude 5.8 quake hit just after 6 a.m. local time (2300 GMT) 45 miles south of Denpasar, the island's capital, the U.S. Geological Survey said. Indonesia's Meteorologicaland Geophysics Agency put the quake at a more powerful 6.4 magnitude.
Seven people were treated for head injuries and broken bones at Sanglah Hospital in Denpasar, said Dr. Ken Wirasandi, adding that women and children had run from their homes screaming when the ground began to rattle.
“I was frightened because it was strong,” said Ernst Raynaldo, a tourist from the Netherlands who was staying at the Kuta beach strip. “I ran out immediately as I saw many others rushing into the swimming pool,” which was the closest open space.
The Bali quake comes just two weeks after a larger tremor on the main Indonesian island of Java killed of left missing nearly 100 people and ruined thousands of homes.
In the Philippines, two strong earthquakes, actually aftershocks of a 5.6-magnitude temblor that occurred Friday night, jolted several places in Mindanao on Saturday, the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) said.
Phivolcs analyst Jenila de Ocampo said that the center of the first aftershock, a 5.3-magnitude temblor recorded at 7:41 a.m. Saturday, originated at eight kilometers Southwest of Koronadal, South Cotabato.
De Ocampo said most people inside their houses and a few people outdoors in Koronadal felt the ground shaking at Intensity 4, which the Richter scale liken to a heavy truck hitting the wall, prompting hanging objects to swing.
She said the aftershock was also felt in General Santos City as well as Polomok Village in South Cotabato at Intensity 3, where many people indoors felt the movement. People outdoors might not have felt the earthquake, she added.
“The earthquake this morning is only an aftershock of the 5.6-magnitude earthquake that rocked Koronadal at 7:54 last night (Friday). We have felt a minor aftershock but this is one of the strongest that we recorded,” De Ocampo said. The 5.6-magnitude quake was also felt strongest in Polomolok, South Cotabato, Intensity 5; Tacurong City, Intensity 4; and Intensity 3 in General Santos City, Davao City, Digos City, and Kabacan, North Cotabato; and Matanao, Davao del Sur, Intensity 2. It was also slightly felt in Isulan, Kalamansig, and Lebaks towns, all in Sultan Kudarat.
An earthquake releasing an energy of 5.3 magnitude “can cause major damage to poorly constructed buildings over small regions, as well as slight damage to well-designed buildings,” seismologists said.
Meanwhile, the United States Geological Survey (US) also recorded another temblor that occurred at around 60 kilometers, southeast of General Santos City at about 9:41 a.m. Saturday. This second aftershock was felt in Korondal City at Intensity 4, General Santos City and Polomolok, both at Intensity 3. (With reports from Rio Rose Ribaya and Bong M. Reblando)



