☰

Global

Two strong quakes off Indonesia's Papua


    JAKARTA (Reuters) - Two quakes off Indonesia's easternmost Papua province within minutes of each other killed two people and damaged hundreds of buildings, but did not impact a major LNG project, officials said on Wednesday.

    A 6.4 magnitude quake was followed 10 minutes later by another of 7.0 magnitude nearby, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) said.

    Indonesia's meteorological agency said the quakes occurred around 120 kilometres (75 miles) southeast of the island of Biak, at a depth of 10 kilometres, and issued a tsunami warning.

    BP said that its Tangguh LNG project in Papua was operating normally and was not affected by the quake.

    National Disaster Mitigation Agency spokesman Priyadi Kardono said a 47-year-old woman and a five-month old baby who lived in Serui on Yapen island had been killed.

    "They were killed by collapsing walls," Kardono told Reuters, adding that 11 churches, four schools and hundreds of houses had collapsed or been damaged.

    "We heard people have gone back home, but until now it's not clear where the people whose houses have collapsed have taken refuge," Kardono added.

    Jaya Murjaya, an official at the meteorological agency, said: "According to reports, the quakes were felt strongly in Biak, and with this intensity the quakes could cause cracks on the walls of houses and buildings."

    (Reporting by Olivia Rondonuwu and Muklis Ali; Editing by Sara Webb and Andrew Marshall)