37 Houses In 5 Karawang Districts Damaged By The M 4.9 Earthquake In Bekasi Regency

Illustration: One unit of the prayer room building in Sukabungah Village, Bojongmangu District, Bekasi Regency collapsed due to an earthquake with a magnitude of 4.9 on Wednesday evening. (ANTARA/Special)

The Regional Disaster Management Agency (BPBD) said dozens of houses were damaged in five sub-districts in Karawang Regency, West Java, due to the impact of the 4.9 magnitude (M) earthquake in Bekasi Regency on Wednesday, August 20 evening.

"A number of houses, health centers, and government offices in five sub-districts were damaged," said Head of the Logistics and Emergency Division of the Karawang Regional Disaster Management Agency (BPBD) Feri Muharram in Karawang, Thursday, as reported by Antara.

In accordance with data collection and reports in the field, the five sub-districts affected by the earthquake included Tegalwaru District (Kutamaneuh Village, Kutalanggeng and Cintawargi Village). Then in Pangkalan District (Ciptasari Village and Cintaasih), West Telukjambe (Wanakerta Village, Mulyajaya and Parungsari).

Furthermore, in Ciampel District (Parunmulya Village) and Klari District (Curug Village).

He said as many as 37 houses in five sub-districts around Karawang were damaged by the earthquake. In addition, four public facilities and government facilities were also reported damaged.

"Reported, there are 101 people affected by the earthquake," he said.

Meanwhile, the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) recorded five earthquakes occurring in a number of areas in West Java in a day on Wednesday.

The tremors of the earthquake were felt by people in West Bandung Regency, Purwakarta, to Bekasi Regency.

Head of the Bandung BMKG Geophysics Station, Teguh Rahayu, said the first earthquake occurred in West Bandung Regency with a magnitude of 1.7 at 12.28 WIB. The epicenter of the earthquake was on land at a distance of 3 kilometers northwest of West Bandung Regency with a depth of 10 kilometers.

"Based on BMKG Bandung monitoring, the Lembang Fault is currently experiencing an increase in seismic activity. We urge the public to increase vigilance and strengthen mitigation," he said.

Shocks were felt in the West Bandung Regency area with an intensity scale of II MMI or mild vibrations. There were no reports of damage to buildings as a result of the incident.

At night, an earthquake measuring 4.9 magnitude occurred in Bekasi Regency at 19.54 WIB with an earthquake center on land, 19 kilometers southeast of Bekasi Regency, at a depth of 10 kilometers.

BMKG said the shallow earthquake was triggered by fault activity by a bow back in West Java (West Java back arc thrust).

After that, two aftershocks occurred again in Bekasi, each with a magnitude of 2.1 at a depth of 10 kilometers and a magnitude of 2 at a depth of 3 kilometers.

In addition to Bekasi, BMKG also recorded aftershocks in Purwakarta Regency with a magnitude of 1.8 at a depth of 33 kilometers at 20.16 WIB.