A magnitude 5.6 earthquake hit Indonesia's Sukabumi Regency on Monday, killing at least 62 people and injuring 700 others, local authorities said.

The national disaster agency said more than 1,700 houses were damaged with over 3,800 people displaced after the quake struck at 1:21 p.m. at a depth of 10 kilometers. The epicenter was about 100 km away from the capital Jakarta.

 

Herman Suherman, regent of the neighboring Cianjur Regency, said hundreds of people have been treated outside local hospitals. "Many more injured people are now waiting to be evacuated. There is a shortage of ambulances here, so we are sending public transport minivans to collect the injured," Herman said.

Medical staff and orthopedic doctors are needed as many victims suffered fractured bones, he added.

West Java Governor Ridwan Kamil said he has ordered medical staff to be dispatched from the capital province of Bandung.

The head of the National Disaster Mitigation Agency, Suharyanto, told a local television network that the quake might affect many semi-permanent houses, as there are high numbers of such buildings in the Sukabumi and Cianjur regencies, West Java Province.

While installing tents for displaced people, the agency was also set to fly a helicopter in Cianjur to reach areas isolated due to landslides, it said.

Local TV networks have broadcast videos showing scores of houses and buildings moderately and seriously damaged by the quake.

The quake was also felt in Jakarta, forcing many office workers in high-rise buildings to evacuate.

Dwikorita Karnawati, head of the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency, said there were 25 aftershocks, with magnitudes ranging from 1.8 to 4.

The quake was also felt in many other cities in West Java, including Bogor, Bandung, Bekasi and Depok.

Indonesia sits in the Pacific Ring of Fire, where many earthquakes and volcanic eruptions occur.

Photo taken on Nov. 21, 2022, shows damage caused by an earthquake in Cianjur, West Java, Indonesia. (Anadolu Agency/Getty/Kyodo)

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