Indonesian tourist island rocked by second huge quake

A 6.3 magnitude tremor has struck the Indonesian holiday island of Lombok after an earthquake killed hundreds of people there earlier this month.

The latest quake was centred in the northeast of the island at a relatively shallow depth of four miles (7km), the US Geological Survey said.

Landslides have been reported on Mount Rinjani, the volcano where hundreds of hikers had been trapped after another quake in late July. Some landslides were reported there, along with damage to buildings/

There are no immediate reports of injuries.

Witnesses said the earthquake was felt strongly in east Lombok.

“I was driving to deliver aid to evacuees when suddenly the electricity pole was swaying. I realised it was an earthquake,” Agus Salim told the AFP news agency.

“People started to scream and cry. They all ran to the street.”

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The shaking toppled motorcycles and there was damage to buildings in the Sembalun district, including a community hall that collapsed after it had been damaged during previous quakes.

National disaster agency spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho said: “The earthquake caused people to panic and flee their houses. We are still checking.”

The tremor was also felt in the island’s capital Mataram and on the neighbouring resort island of Bali.

Endri Susanto, a children rights activist in Mataram, said: “Everybody ran outside their house. They’re all gathering in an open field, still terrified.

“People are traumatised by the previous earthquakes and aftershocks never seem to stop.”

It comes two weeks after a shallow 6.9 magnitude quake on 5 August killed more than 430 people and levelled tens of thousands of homes and businesses across Lombok.

Indonesia sits on the so-called Pacific “Ring of Fire” where tectonic plates collide and many of the world’s volcanic eruptions and earthquakes occur.