Indonesia Hit by Powerful Earthquake

In Indonesia Java Island has been stricken by a strong earthquake, causing buildings to sway in the capital, Jakarta.

Photo: Indonesia Hit by Powerful Earthquake

Indonesia 's meteorology agency has not issued a tsunami warning and there were no immediate reports of damage.

But the quake caused panic in some areas as people fled from homes and offices, ABC Online reports.

Meanwhile, thousands of office workers in high-rise buildings panicked and ran out of the buildings when a tremor hit Jakarta at 4.52pm (local time) following a 6.4-magnitude earthquake off Banten, West Java, on Friday.

People who are still traumatised by recent news of the possibility of a strong earthquake of up to 8.8 on the Richter scale occurring, after the 7.9-magnitude earthquake that hit West Sumatra on Sept 30, are even more worried now.

"I rushed down the stairs after I saw the cupboard in my office fall and I too fell on the floor," said Abrizal who gathered with hundreds of other office workers in front of Wisma Antara, Bernama reports.

In the meantime, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) will provide emergency grant assistance of US$3 million to help victims of quake-affected areas in West Sumatra and Jambi provinces, as the official death toll has climbed to 1,117.

ADB said in a statement Friday that the $3 million in assistance would be used to help restore essential public services and improve access to villages in remote areas, following two earthquakes believed to have killed 1,117 people, including those still missing under rubble and landslides, whilst damaging more than 198,200 homes, according to the United Nations’ Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

“ADB is committed to helping earthquake-affected families during this trying time,” said Jim Nugent, ADB’s country director in Indonesia. “There are still many families in need of assistance, and ADB will work closely with the Indonesian government and other development partners to provide these families with the support they need,” Jakarta Post reports.