TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) recorded a magnitude 5 earthquake in Padangsidempuan, North Sumatra, at around 08:25 am.
The epicenter of the quake was at the depth of 10 km on land, at roughly 14 km northwest of Padangsidempuan City.
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“The earthquake in Padangsidempuan is a shallow crustal earthquake caused by activities in the Sumatra fault zone that were sparked by a strike-slip fault,” the BMKG head Mochamad Riyadi said Friday, July 14.
BMKG recorded two aftershocks until 09:30. He urged the residents around Padangsidempuan to stay calm and not get affected by unconfirmed news following the earthquake.
He suspects that the active fault in the Angkola segment has caused the quake. Based on the seismic characteristics and the mechanism of its origin, the earthquake was purely caused by tectonic activities and not volcanic.
DIKO OKTARA