Indonesia rattled by earthquake and volcano eruption

An Indonesian man looks on as volcanic ash is spewed from Mount Baru Jari on November 1 as seen from from Mount Rinjani in Lombok. It was Mount Rinjani's turn to erupt today. Pikong / AFP Photo

JAKARTA // A strong earthquake struck off eastern Indonesia on Wednesday after a volcano eruption elsewhere in the country forced the closure of airports and blanketed villages and farmlands with ash.

The magnitude-6.3 earthquake was centred 28 kilometres north-east of the Alor island chain in East Nusatenggara province, according to Indonesia’s Meteorology and Geophysics Agency. The US Geological Survey, which also put the magnitude at 6.3, said the earthquake had a depth of 14 kilometres.

The volcano, Mount Rinjani on Lombok Island, blasted ash and debris 3,500m into the air on Wednesday, said Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, the National Disaster Mitigation Agency spokesman.

Indonesia is the world’s largest archipelago and is prone to seismic upheaval due to its location on the Pacific “Ring of Fire,” an arc of about 130 volcanoes and fault lines encircling the Pacific Basin.

“The earthquake shook everything for about 11 seconds, causing people to run from their houses in panic,” said Marthen Daud Ndauman, a government official on Alor, the island closest to the earthquake’s epicentre.

He said a lack of telecommunication networks in remote areas were making it difficult to get an immediate reports of casualties or damage.

The Meteorology and Geophysics Agency said the earthquake did not have the potential to trigger a tsunami.

Mount Rinjani’s eruption has left thousands of tourists stranded on three Indonesian islands and forced the closure of several airports.

The eruption shut down flights at the Ngurah Rai international airport in Bali, about 135 kilometres from Lombok, and the Selaparang airport in Mataram, the capital of West Nusatenggara province, located on Lombok Island.

Later Wednesday, the Blimbingsari airport in Banyuwangi on the eastern end of main Java Island was also closed, the Ministry of Transportation said.

The closure of the airports affected a total of 692 international and domestic flights, which were either cancelled or delayed from Tuesday to Thursday, the ministry said.

* Associated Press

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