The number of people injured in the earthquake which hit Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam (NAD) province on Wednesday afternoon reportedly rose to 51, two of them dead, a local official said, according to ANTARA. The dead victims of Simeulue Timur district were identified as Sadiman Kimat (62) and Habisah (70) who were hit by debris of a building which caved in due to the quake, Head of Simeulue district`s Social Affairs Office, Zulmufti, said here Thursday. A tectonic earthquake measuring 6.6 on the Richter scale on Wednesday afternoon jolted Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam (NAD) province causing local people to panic, especially those living on the province`s western and southern coastal areas. Head of the Mata Ie Geophysics Station in Aceh Besar district, Syahnan, said the epicenter of the quake which was located at a depth of 30 kilometers occurred at 3.08 p.m. on the coordinates of 2.58 degrees northern latitude -95.99 degrees eastern longitude, some 42 kilometers southwest of Sinabang a, Simeulue district. The quake whose epicenter was located on land took place about 15 minutes was also felt by people in Aceh`s capital of Banda Aceh but in a stronger way in Simeulue, Meulaboh (West Aceh) and Tapaktuan (South Aceh). Zulmufti said the 51 victims due to the natural disaster consisted of 26 in Simeulue district and 25 in Simeulue Barat district. The calamity also badly damaged a ferry port in Sinabang, three government offices, two school buildings and health care facilities, he said, adding that a mosque also underwent a minor damage.
