An earthquake has struck Indonesia’s central Java island, killing at least 56 people and injuring hundreds, local officials said.
The 5.6-magnitude quake struck at a shallow depth of 10 kilometers (six miles) in the city of Cianjur in West Java, according to data from the US Geological Survey.
Hundreds of people were taken to hospital, many of whom were treated outside.
Rescuers worked through the night to try to rescue others still trapped under the collapsed buildings.
The area where the earthquake struck is densely populated and prone to landslides, with poorly constructed houses reduced to rubble in many areas.
West Java Governor Rizwan Kamil confirmed to local media that 56 people were killed and more than 700 injured.
He said the number of injuries and deaths was expected to rise as “many people” were still trapped at the scene, with some areas cut off by landslides.
Earlier, Herman Sahrman, the head of administration in the town of Sianjur, said that most of the injuries were caused by broken bones of people trapped in the rubble of buildings.
“Ambulances keep coming to the hospital from villages,” he was quoted as saying by JEE News. “There are many families in the villages who have not been evacuated.”
The governor of West Java said many of the injured were treated outside after the hospital lost power for several hours after the quake.
