Indonesia earthquake death toll climbs to 56

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Jakarta, Jan 17 (IANS) The number of casualties due to the 6.2-magnitude earthquake which struck Indonesia's West Sulawesi province has increased to to 56, country's National Disaster Management Agency said on Sunday.

Agency spokesman Raditya Jati said the number of injured remained at 826, including 189 people suffering serious wounds in Mamuju city who have been undergoing medical treatment, and 12 others sustaining severe wounds in Majene district.

As of Sunday, the assessment of the risks of the shallow-under land quake persists, he told Xinhua news agency.

Electricity has returned functioning after massive blackout in Mamuju city, and parts of the facility have also recovered in Majene district, while repairs are underway, Jati said.

Besides, he said the main road connecting the two areas has also functioned after the jolts cut some parts of the main land-transportation infrastructure.

The emergency relief aids keep flowing into the affected persons who are taking shelters in several evacuation centres, he added.

Aftershocks have continued in the region, according to the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency.

In the last 30 days, Indonesia was struck by three quakes of magnitude 6.0 or above, 22 quakes between 5.0 and 6.0, 143 quakes between 4.0 and 5.0, 367 quakes between 3.0 and 4.0, and 247 quakes between 2.0 and 3.0, according to authorities.

There were also 13 quakes below magnitude 2.0 which people do not normally feel.

On September 26, 2019, at least 41 people were killed, 1,578 others injured, while more than 150,000 were evacuated when an earthquake measuring 6.5 on the Richter scale struck the Seram Island in Maluku.

There were at least 1,105 aftershocks in Maluku after the temblor.

--IANS

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