A 6.5 magnitude earthquake has struck the capital city of Ambon in the eastern province of Maluku. Most of the victims were killed by the collapse of houses and buildings in an unprepared region with weak infrastructure.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/T. Salampessy
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Indonesian officials announced on Friday that 19 people have died, with around 100 more people suffering from injuries.
While the region has a relatively smaller population than other parts of the country, poor housing structures in Ambon could cause the death toll to rise further.
Indonesia's National Disaster Mitigation Agency said most victims died as a result of collapsed infrastructure and that at least 117 buildings were damaged. Approximately 15,000 people sought refuge in temporary shelters.
Local disaster official Albert Simaela said the earthquake caused havoc in the city, with tsunami fears driving many people to scramble for higher ground.
"The temblor was so strong, causing us to pour into the streets," said Musa, an Ambon resident.
According to the disaster official, traffic congestion hit the city as droves of people took to motorbikes in an attempt to reach safer grounds.
Rahmat Triyono, head of Indonesia's earthquake and tsunami center, reassured the region that the inland earthquake does not have the potential to unleash a tsunami.
Simaela announced that parts of a building at an Islamic university collapsed in Ambon and confirmed the death of a teacher who was present at the time of the collapse.
Simaela also said that the city's main hospital was damaged and that patients had to be evacuated to tents in the hospital's backyard.
Around 15,000 are housed in temporary shelters after about 117 buildings collapsed following the quake Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/T. Salampessy
The quake created large cracks in a main bridge in Ambon and several government offices were also affected.
According to the US Geological Survey, the earthquake covered a stretch of 33 kilometers (20.5 miles) northeast of Ambon at a depth of 18 kilometers (11 miles).
Indonesian television footage showed hundreds of people sleeping in tents or in the open air overnight.
Maluku, despite being one of Indonesia's least populated provinces, still has around 1.7 million residents.
The most devastating tsunamis tend to occur on the Pacific coast following earthquakes. Here are some of the worst of the past 20 years in pictures.
Image: BNPB
Indonesia, 2018
On December 22, 2018, the small Indonesian volcano Anak Krakatau erupted, causing a tsunami in the Sunda Strait between the islands of Sumatra and Java. More than 200 people were killed, according to initial estimates, and more than 800 injured. Anak Krakatau is a small volcanic island that emerged after the devastating 1883 eruption of Indonesia's well-known Krakatoa volcano.
Image: BNPB
New Zealand, 2016
The 2016 Kaikoura earthquake was the second-worst in the country's post-colonial history. Ruptures occured along multiple fault lines, prompting about 20,000 aftershocks and a 7-meter (22-foot) tsunami. Two people were killed and dozens injured.
Image: Imago/Xinhua/L. Huizi
Japan, 2011
The 2011 Japanese tsunami was triggered by a massive underwater earthquake. Waves reached up to 40.5 meters (133 feet) high. The disaster killed some 16,000 people and injured thousands more, as well as destroying homes and communities. It also caused the meltdown of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, the worst nuclear disaster since Chernobyl.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/S. Tomizawa
Chile, 2010
Chile is earthquake-prone, and indeed a 1960 earthquake there is still the strongest ever recorded. In February 2010, an 8.8-magnitude tremor prompted tsunami warnings as far away as Japan and Russia. A wave of several tsunamis hit the Chilean coast, added to the damage that left at least 525 people dead.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/M. Hernandez
Solomon Islands, 2007
In April 2007, an earthquake struck the Solomon Islands and Papua New Guinea. At least 52 people were killed when a 12-meter (40-foot) tsunami completely washed away two villages. Around 900 homes were destroyed, as well as a hospital.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/F. Robichon
Indian Ocean, 2004
This picture from a beach in Thailand shows just a fraction of the devastation caused by the massive earthquake and 30-meter (120-foot) tsunami that came on December 26, 2004. Fourteen countries were affected, and about 230,000 people lost their lives. The earthquake is the third-largest ever recorded.
