Panic as major quake hits Indonesia

INDONESIA: A major 7.0-magnitude quake shook Indonesia's Java island on Wednesday, sparking panic in the capital Jakarta and triggering a small tsunami, officials said.

The quake struck less than 200 kilometres (123 miles) south of Jakarta at a depth of 49 kilometres, the US Geological Survey said, revising the strength down from 7.4-magnitude reported earlier.

People fled shopping centres and were evacuated from office towers in Jakarta as buildings swayed violently for at least a minute just after 3:00 pm (0800 GMT).

"It was very scary. The floor was swaying and I heard loud sounds from the upper floor, like something was going to collapse," student Rini, 18, said after she fled the Grand Indonesia shopping centre in the heart of Jakarta.

JAKARTA, Wednesday, AFP