Indonesia: Java quake kills 162 and injures hundreds

(BBC) An earthquake on the main Indonesian island of Java has killed at least 162 people and injured hundreds, regional governor Ridwan Kamil has said.

The 5.6 magnitude quake struck Cianjur town in West Java, at a shallow depth of 10km (six miles), according to US Geological Survey data.

Scores of people were taken to hospital, with many treated outside.

Rescuers were working into the night to try to save others thought to still be trapped under collapsed buildings.

The area where the quake struck is densely populated and prone to landslides, with poorly built houses reduced to rubble in many areas.

Earlier, Indonesia’s National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) said at least 62 people had died, according to the latest available data.

Speaking to local media, Mr Kamil said some 326 people had been injured in the quake, noting that “most of them sustained fractures from being crushed in ruins”.

But he warned some residents remained “trapped in isolated places” and said officials were “under the assumption that the number of injured and deaths will rise with time”.

The West Java governor added that more than 13,000 people had been displaced by the disaster, and the BNPB said over 2,200 homes had been damaged by the quake.