At least 20 reported dead in Indonesian quake

“We are now deploying heavy machines to help out and hopefully we can save the ones who are trapped”, he said. “The search this night depends on the location and the weather conditions”, he says.

There are also fears that many people were still trapped in collapsed buildings, added Suyitno, the head of the search and rescue agency in Aceh. More than 160,000 people died in Indonesia alone, and most of those deaths occurred in Aceh.

Some media reports in Indonesia quoted Aceh officials as saying at least 18 people had been confirmed dead and 30 injured. Aid, including hygiene kits, tarpaulins, jerry cans, blankets and family assistance kits, is being distributed, with more to be sent from Jakarta, he said.

In the coastal town of Sigli, people panicked and fled their houses to seek shelter away from the sea.

“So far 97 people have been killed and the number keeps growing”, Aceh military chief Tatang Sulaiman told AFP after the army took over responsibility for the search and rescue.

The death toll continues to rise from a strong quake that struck Indonesia early Wednesday. He didn’t say whether they were alive or not.

He told a press conference that 148 million Indonesians, or more than half its population, live in quake-prone areas.

Thailand’s National Disaster Warning Center reported that the quake was felt in several Thai provinces.

There was no tsunami after Wednesday’s tremor, which the US Geological Survey said struck just offshore early in the morning at a depth of 8km (5 miles). The rest were mainly dwellings and shop houses.

Other local hospitals in the area also saw volunteer teams bringing the injured, filling most of the hospitals to capacity.

Authorities said the quake did more damage than anticipated due to inadequately raised buildings.

Almost 100 people have been killed and dozens of buildings destroyed following the 6.5 quake in Aceh.

The national disaster agency said almost 600 buildings were severely damaged or destroyed in the districts of Pidie Jaya, Pidie and Bireun. Another two people died in neighboring Bireuen district. Over 1,00,000 died in Aceh after a Dec 26, 2004, quake triggered a devastating tsunami.

The Australian government, which has a sometimes testy relationship with its northern neighbor Indonesia, says it’s ready to help with the response to Wednesday’s strong natural disaster. There was no risk of a tsunami.

She said: “It terrified me”.

We immediately ran outside. “I was so scared the tsunami was coming”.

If the Aceh region sounds familiar, that’s because it faced the brunt of the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami that killed 230,000 people in the transcontinental region.