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Bali earthquake: Three killed, including young girl, in natural disaster

Firdia Lisnawati and Niniek KarminiDeutsche Presse Agentur
A 4.8 magnitude earthquake has struck northeast of Bali, Indonesia, killing at least three people.
Camera IconA 4.8 magnitude earthquake has struck northeast of Bali, Indonesia, killing at least three people. Credit: EPA

At least three people have been killed and another seven injured when a moderately strong earthquake and an aftershock hit Indonesia’s resort island of Bali.

The quake hit just before dawn on Saturday, causing people to run outdoors in a panic. It struck just as the island is beginning to reopen to tourism as the COVID-19 pandemic wanes.

The US Geological Survey said the magnitude 4.8 quake was centred 62 kilometres northeast of Singaraja, a Bali port town. Its shallow depth of 10km may have amplified the amount of damage.

A magnitude 4.3 aftershock followed. That quake was relatively deep, at 282km.

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Gede Darmada, head of the island’s Search and Rescue Agency, said the agency was still collecting updates on damage and casualties.

He said the injuries included broken bones and head wounds.

The earthquake triggered landslides in a hilly district, killing at least two people and cutting off access to at least three villages, Darmada said.

It toppled homes and temples in Karangasem, the area closest to the epicentre, killing a three-year-old girl who was hit by falling debris.

Houses and government facilities were damaged in Trunyan and in Kintamani villages, a popular sightseeing destination with a stunning lake.

Known as the “island of the gods,” Bali is home to more than four million mostly Hindu people in the mainly Muslim nation. It is famed for its temples, scenic volcanoes and beautiful white-sand beaches.

Indonesia, a vast archipelago of 270 million people, is frequently struck by earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and tsunamis because of its location on the “Ring of Fire,” an arc of volcanoes and fault lines that arcs the Pacific.

The last major earthquake was in January when a magnitude 6.2 earthquake killed at least 105 people and injured nearly 6500.

More than 92,000 people were displaced after it struck Mamuju and Majene districts in West Sulawesi province.

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