Quake in Sumatra, tremors in Malaysia

A powerful earthquake measuring 7.9 on the Richter scale struck off the coast of Padang in southern Sumatra at about 6.17pm, causing tremors as far away as peninsular Malaysia.

The epicentre of the quake was about 481km southwest from Kuala Lumpur.

At 6.38pm, an aftershock measuring 5.5 was also recorded 11km north of Padang.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre first issued a tsunami alert for Indonesia, Malaysia, India and Thailand, but later cancelled it at about 7.31pm, saying that no significant waves were generated.

The Malaysian Meteorological Department did not issue a warning for Malaysia because it believed the waves will not reach our shores. However, the Department told The Star that it will continue to monitor the situation.

People evacuated high-rise buildings in the Klang Valley, including the KL City Centre.

In the JayaOne complex here, reports came in of shaking furniture and swaying fixtures.

Mariam Anis and her colleagues on their 21st-floor office in Plaza Sentral, Jalan Sultan Ismail in Kuala Lumpur felt the tremors.

“The tremors were strong and I could feel the building shaking. My colleagues and I did not waste another second and ran towards the emergency stairways to make our way down from the 21st floor.

“It was rather scary,” she said.

Tremors were also felt in the federal administrative capital of Putrajaya. Mohd Kamel Othman, press secretary to Minister Tan Sri Nor Mohamed Yakcop, was in his office at the Prime Minister’s Department when he felt the tremor.

“I could literally see the building moving from left to right. Even the flowerpots were shaking. I immediately rallied my colleagues to leave the building.

“My minister also came out of his office as he too could feel the tremors,” he said, adding while he had experienced tremors before, the one which occured Wednesday were stronger.

So far, there has been no report of the 300 Malaysian students at Andalas University in Padang being affected by the massive earthquake.

Malaysian Consul-General Fauzi Omar told The Star that he has contacted the Sumatra Barat tourism chief and was told that there is no report of any Malaysians being hurt.

“Well at least the tourism chief’s handset is still working. I have been told the Minangkabau airport in Padang is closed.

“I am trying to leave for Padang tonight. It is a one-hour flight and by road it will take at least one day because of the bad road condition,” Fauzi said.

The Malaysian Embassy in Jakarta is despatching a team to Padang in Sumatra to assist the Consul-General in Medan to check on the students.

Padang was hardest hit by the earthquake.

“We are sending a team as soon as possible and our Consul-General in Pekan Baru will also be despatched to help,” said Malaysian embassy charge d’affaires Amran Mohamad Zain.

Tremors were also felt in Singapore. There were no immediate reports of a high waves or injuries.

India has also not issued a tsunami warning, an official said.

“Our model simulations do not show any significant threat to India. For India we have not issued any tsunami warning.” said Srinivasa Kumar of the Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services, Reuters reported.

The wire agency also said that the quake, which struck off the city of Padang on the coast of Sumatra, damaged houses, brought down bridges and started fires in the city.

“Hundreds of houses have been damaged along the road. There are some fires, bridges are cut and there is extreme panic here maybe because water pipes are broken and there is flooding in the streets,” said a Reuters witness in the city.

Phone lines were down, Reuters reported.

The depth of the tsunami was measured at 85km, the United States Geological Survey said.

A series of tsunamis earlier smashed into the Pacific island nations of American and Western Samoa killing possibly more than 100 people, some washed out to sea, destroying villages and injuring hundreds, officials said on Wednesday.

A 9.15-magnitude quake, with its epicentre roughly 600km northwest of Padang, caused the 2004 tsunami which killed 232,000 people in Indonesia’s Aceh province, Thailand, Sri Lanka, India, and other countries across the Indian Ocean.

Geologists have long said Padang, with a population of 900,000, may one day be destroyed by a huge earthquake because of its location, Reuters reported.

“Padang sits right in front of the area with the greatest potential for an 8.9 magnitude earthquake,” said Danny Hilman Natawidjaja, a geologist at the Indonesian Science Institute, earlier this year.

“The entire city could drown,” in a tsunami triggered by such a quake, he warned.

THE STAR (30th sept)

Gempa 7.9 magnitud di Sumatera

Gempa bumi kuat berukuran 7.9 magnitud yang melanda selatan Sumatera pada jam 6.20 petang tadi turut dirasai hampir seluruh pantai barat Semenanjung.

Menurut laporan Agensi Penyelidikan Geologikal Amerika Syarikat (USGS), gempa yang berlaku jam 5.16 petang (waktu Jakarta) di selatan Sumatera membabitkan Kuala Lumpur dengan jarak 480 kilometer dari pusat gempa; Padang, Pekanbaru dan Sibolga.

Pusat Amaran Tsunami Pasifik mengeluarkan amaran tsunami kepada Indonesia, Malaysia, India dan Thailand berikutan gempa bumi berukuran 7.9 mangnitud melanda barat Sumatera, jam 6.20 petang tadi.

Gegaran dapat dirasai di bangunan tinggi di Jakarta sehingga ke Singapura dan Malaysia.

Gegaran kedua gempa bumi berukuran 5.4 Richter yang melanda selatan Sumatera pada jam 6.38 petang tadi, susulan gempa pertama kira-kira 20 minit lalu.

Ia turut menggegarkan pantai barat Semenanjung berikutan gempa pertama berukuran 7.9 Richter di pusat gempa selatan Sumatera.

Seramai 330 pelajar Malaysia di Padang, Sumatera dilaporkan selamat selepas kejadian gempa bumi yang berlaku berhampiran bandar itu, demikian disahkan oleh Jabatan Penuntut Malaysia di sini.

Pengarah Jabatan Penuntut Malaysia, Dr Junaidi Abu Bakar, berkata 80 peratus daripada pelajar sudah berkumpul di lapangan kampus perubatan Universiti Andalas sehingga jam 6.30 petang tadi.

Berita Harian (30 september 2009)

Mahasiswa Malaysia-Indonesia setuju tubuh sebuah badan baru elak ketegangan

Mahasiswa Malaysia dan Indonesia telah mengorak langkah positif untuk meredakan ketegangan kedua-dua buah negara ekoran sentimen anti-Malaysia yang sedang panas di negara tersebut sekarang dengan bersetuju membentuk sebuah badan baru yang dinamakan Indonesian-Malaysian Students Association (IMSA).

Persetujuan tersebut dicapai hasil pertemuan yang dianjurkan oleh Jabatan Penuntut Malaysia (MSD) Jakarta pada malam Jumaat lalu.

Pengarah MSD Jakarta, Dr Junaidy Abu Bakar memberitahu mStar Online, persetujuan tersebut dicapai dalam pertemuan yang dihadiri oleh wakil-wakil daripada Persatuan Kebangsaan Pelajar Malaysia-Indonesia dan Kelab UMNO Jakarta dengan pemimpin pelajar Indonesia yang diwakili oleh Badan Eksekutif Mahasiswa Indonesia.

Persatuan Kebangsaan Pelajar Malaysia-Indonesia adalah badan terbesar mewakili lebih 5,900 pelajar Malaysia yang kini sedang menuntut di Indonesia.

Pertemuan tersebut diatur oleh MSD untuk meredakan ketegangan ekoran sentimen anti-Malaysia yang dianjurkan oleh beberapa badan tertentu khususnya oleh satu kumpulan yang mengelar diri mereka sebagai Benteng Demokrasi Rakyat.

Sentimen anti-Malaysia ini dianjur dalam bentuk demonstrasi saban hari khususnya di Jalan Diponegoro, Jakarta yang terletak hanya lebih kurang 7 hingga 8 kilometer dari Kedutaan Malaysia.

Mereka juga melakukan demonstrasi di hadapan kedutaan Malaysia hampir setiap hari sejak beberapa minggu kebelakangan ini termasuk membaling telur busuk minggu lalu selepas Malaysia dituduh mencuri tarian Pendet yang berasal dari Bali sebagai tarian Malaysia dalam satu program promosi Malaysia yang disiarkan di saluran Discovery Channel.

Saluran itu bagaimanapun telah mengaku ia merupakan satu kesilapan dipihak mereka dan bukannya kesalahan kerajaan Malaysia.

Malaysia sebelum ini telah beberapa kali dituduh mencuri kebudayaan Indonesia termasuk tarian lagu barongan, batik, rasa sayang dan baru-baru ini, lagu kebangsaan.

Dr Junaidy, ketika dihubungi di Jakarta tengah hari Sabtu berkata, kedua-dua badan mahasiswa itu bersetuju untuk meletakkan IMSA di bawah naungan MSD.

Antara lain katanya IMSA akan bertindak menganjurkan program-program yang dapat meningkatkan kerjasama dan pemahaman di antara mahasiswa kedua-dua buah negara.

Malah katanya, pemantauan keselamatan mahasiswa Malaysia akan turut dilakukan oleh organisasi bersama ini dan Badan Eksekutif Mahasiswa Indonesia sendiri telah memberi jaminan bahawa mereka akan memaklumkan kepada seluruh cawangannya di mana terdapatnya pelajar Malaysia supaya turut memantau keselamatan mahasiswa Malaysia.

Beliau juga berkata, IMSA akan turut menganjurkan program sukan dan program kebudayaan serta program kesukarelaan yang melibatkan bukan sahaja mahasiswa tetapi rakyat kedua-dua buah negara.

“Dalam tempoh terdekat ini, satu program lawatan sambil belajar akan kita aturkan untuk membolehkan mahasiswa Indonesia lebih mengenali budaya dan cara hidup Malaysia. IMSA akan merangka dan laksanakan program ini nanti,” katanya.

Menurut Dr Junaidy, kedua-dua pihak juga bersetuju sekiranya pelajar Malaysia di Indonesia menganjurkan sesuatu program, Badan Eksekutif Mahasiswa Indonesia akan turut menghantar wakilnya ke program tersebut.

Sejak sentimen anti-Malaysia melanda Indonesia seminggu yang lalu, MSD telah mengambil langkah segera memantau institusi dan juga bandar yang terdapat penuntut Malaysia.

Pegawai MSD turut berkunjung ke bandar-bandar seperti Jogjakarta di mana jumlah populasi mahasiswa Malaysia adalah di antara yang terbesar.

Malah di Jogjakarta, Medan dan Makasar, terdapat demonstrasi di dalam kampus yang ditujukan kepada para pelajar Malaysia. Di Jogjakarta misalnya kediaman seorang penuntut perubatan Malaysia telah dilontar dengan objek tetapi setakat ini tiada kecederaan yang dilaporkan.

MSD juga telah meminta kerjasama daripada Persatuan Kebangsaan Pelajar Malaysia-Indonesia dan Kelab Umno Indonesia untuk bertindak sebagai pemantau memandangkan kedua-dua organisasi ini mempunyai cawangan di universiti yang terdapat pelajar Malaysia.

Di antara langkah keselamatan yang telah diambil oleh MSD ialah menasihati pelajar agar tidak membalas sebarang provokasi daripada mana-mana badan atau individu yang menunjukkan sentimen anti-Malaysia; mengelak daripada berada di kawasan demonstrasi diadakan; mereka diminta segera merujuk kepada pihak berkuasa Malaysia atau tempatan sekiranya berlaku sesuatu insiden; mereka juga telah dibekalkan dengan nombor telefon kedutaan dan konsul general Malaysia di Indonesia termasuk no telefon bimbit para pegawai MSD.

http://mstar.com.my/berita/cerita.asp?file=/2009/9/12/mstar_berita/20090912151131&sec=mstar_berita