Scores Dead After Island's 2nd Strong Quake in a Week

Lombok death toll is 91, expected to rise
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Aug 6, 2018 12:07 AM CDT
Scores Dead After Island's 2nd Strong Quake in a Week
Houses damaged by an earthquake are seen in North Lombok, Indonesia, Monday, Aug. 6, 2018.   (AP Photo/Sidik Hutomo)

Rescuers still haven't reached some devastated parts of the Indonesian tourist island of Lombok after a powerful earthquake flattened houses and toppled bridges, killing at least 91 people and shaking neighboring Bali, authorities said Monday. The death toll is expected to rise. It was the second deadly quake in a week to hit Lombok. A July 29 quake killed 16 people and damaged hundreds of houses, some of which collapsed in Sunday evening's magnitude 7.0 temblor, killing those inside. National Disaster Mitigation Agency spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho says damage was "massive" in northern Lombok. In several districts, more than half the homes were destroyed or severely damaged.

Some areas still haven't been reached, with rescuers battling against collapsed bridges, electricity blackouts and damaged roads blocked with debris, the AP reports. Lack of heavy equipment was hampering attempts to find victims beneath the rubble of a mosque that collapsed in northern Lombok while villagers prayed inside, Nugroho said. The death toll had risen to 91 and will "definitely increase," he said, adding that two of the deaths were in Bali and the rest in Lombok. More than 200 people were seriously injured. Thousands of homes and buildings were damaged and 20,000 people are in temporary shelters.

(More Indonesia stories.)

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