Strong earthquake causes panic among tourists in Bali

PanARMENIAN.Net - A 6.0-magnitude earthquake struck off the Indonesian island of Bali Thursday, October 13, causing panic in tourist areas as people fled buildings that cracked as they shook violently in the tremor.

The US Geological Survey (USGS) said the quake's epicenter was in the ocean south of Bali's capital Denpasar, but the Hawaii-based Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said there was no current tsunami warning in effect.

Strong shaking was felt for several minutes in the main tourist district of Kuta, said Endro Tjahjono from the Bali office of Indonesia's Meteorology and Geophysics Agency.

"There was panic - everyone ran out of the buildings. When we returned to our office building, we saw some cracks on the wall and plaster had come off the walls," he said.

The epicenter was measured at 61.3 kilometers (38.1 miles) deep, some 130 kilometres south-southwest of Bali's capital Denpasar, said the US seismologists, who measured the magnitude at 6.0.

Indonesia's Meteorology and Geophysics Agency measured the undersea quake at 6.8 magnitude and put the quake's depth at just 10 kilometers, but said it was unlikely to cause a tsunami.

There were no reports of injuries but several hospital buildings suffered light damage, AFP reported.