Major Earthquake in Indonesia Kills 75, Hundreds Trapped

A major earthquake struck Indonesia Wednesday, killing at least 75 people and leaving hundreds injured or trapped under rubble.

The earthquake was centered in Indonesia’s West Sumatra province about 33 miles from the capital, Padang. It was felt as far away as Singapore and Malaysia.

The 7.6 magnitude tremblor hit around 5 p.m. local time and caused widespread power and phone outages. The outages have made it hard for officials to assess the damage. Amelia Merrick, the operations director for World Vision Indonesia, has described the situation as “quiet devastating.”

"Bridges have gone down, phone lines are in total disrepair; it's difficult for us to assess the situation," Merrick said.

According to a Red Cross disaster report, 75 people have been confirmed dead so far. Another 75 were seriously injured and thousands of others may be trapped by collapsed buildings.

Many residents feared a tsunami and fled to higher ground. The earthquake did generate a tsunami just under one foot high, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said. A tsunami watch was issued for Indonesia, India, Thailand and Malaysia but was later canceled.

On Tuesday, an 8.0 magnitude earthquake struck the Samoan Islands and generated 3 separate tsunamis, the highest being 5 feet. At least 11 people were killed. The dead included 22 people in American Samoa, 82 in Samoa and 7 in Tonga. Many villages were destroyed or submerged underwater. The death toll is expected to rise as rescue workers are able to reach remote villages.

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