TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - A 5.5 magnitude tectonic earthquake that rocked Bengkulu on Wednesday, July 20, 2022, at 06:46:50 WIB (Western Indonesian Time) was felt strong.

“The Bengkulu quake this morning was felt very strongly in Bengkulu City at the MMI scale level IV-V, causing residents to run out of their houses,” said Daryono, the quake and tsunami mitigation coordinator at the Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG).

The MMI IV scale means the shaking can be felt indoors by many and outdoors by few during the day. It can also make windows and doors, as well as walls, producing cracking sounds.

The V scale means the shaking felt by nearly everyone and many are awakened. Unstable objects are overturned and pendulum clocks may stop.

“Until now there have been no reports of damages caused by the quake,” said Daryono.

The tremor was also felt strong in Kepahiang, North Bengkulu at level III-IV of the MMI, in Muko-muko and Krui at level III of MMI, and in Muara Dua, Lubuk Linggau at level II of MMI.

According to Daryono, the earthquake was centered at sea, 4.33 degrees south latitude and 101.95 degrees east longitude, or about 64 kilometers southwest of Bengkulu City. The quake did have the potential to trigger a tsunami.

It was classified as a shallow quake, as the hypocenter was 56 kilometers. “It is due to the subduction activity of the Indo-Australian plate under Sumatra Island in the megathrust zone,” he explained.

As of 07:25 WIB, one aftershock with a magnitude of 3.7 was recorded. Daryono reminded the public that Bengkulu is a quake and tsunami-prone area. “Proper quake and tsunami mitigation efforts must be realized to reduce the risk of potential disasters,” he said.

Bengkulu had been hit by a number of large earthquakes. For example, the 7.9 magnitude quake on June 4, 2000, which killed 94 people, and the 8.5 magnitude quake on September 12, 2007, that triggered a tsunami and killed 23 people.

ANWAR SISWADI

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