19 Sep 2009

Earthquake off Bali injures seven, sparks panic

4:04 pm on 19 September 2009

An earthquake off Bali has injured at least seven people and sent many running from their homes in panic.

The 5.8 quake struck at dawn 75km south of the Balinese capital, Denpasar.

Some people were hurt jumping from buildings while others had been hit by falling debris, an official said. The roof of the Ramayana shopping centre in Denpasar collapsed but there were no customers inside at that hour.

There were few early reports of serious material damage, and no tsunami warning was issued.

Two weeks ago, a 7.0 earthquake on the main Indonesian island of Java left at least 50 dead and destroyed thousands of houses in the hills.

In December 2004, an earthquake off the coast of Sumatra triggered a tsunami that killed more than 200,000 people around Asia.

Indonesia sits on the Pacific Ring of Fire, one of the most active areas for earthquakes and volcanic activity in the world.