Magnitude 5.8 earthquake strikes Sulawesi, injuring 29

A 5.8-magnitude undersea earthquake hit Indonesia’s Sulawesi island on Sunday, injuring 29 people and damaging buildings, including a church where worshippers were gathered.

The quake struck 15 kilometres north of the Poso district in Central Sulawesi, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. It was followed by at least 15 aftershocks, but no tsunami warning was issued by Indonesian authorities.

Most of the injured were attending a Sunday service when the quake damaged part of the church building, Indonesia’s National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) said. Two people remain in critical condition.

“Amateur videos showing structural damage to the church have been circulating,” BNPB spokesperson Abdul Muhari said. “Poso Disaster Mitigation Agency continues to conduct rapid assessments in the field.”

Authorities said all injured persons had been taken to nearby hospitals for treatment.

Indonesia, home to more than 270 million people, sits on the Pacific 'Ring of Fire', where tectonic plates frequently collide, causing earthquakes, tsunamis and volcanic eruptions.

In 2022, a 5.6-magnitude quake in West Java killed at least 602 people, while a 2018 earthquake and tsunami in Sulawesi left more than 4,300 dead. The 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, triggered by a powerful undersea quake, remains the region’s deadliest disaster, killing more than 230,000 people, mostly in Indonesia’s Aceh province.

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