Earthquake Journal Entry

Deadly Quake Slams Indonesia (May 28, 2006)

A killer earthquake measuring magnitude 6.3 jolted the island of Java in central Indonesia. The powerful quake killed over 4,500 people and left about 200,000 people homeless. The toll is expected to climb as workers pull more victims from the rubble.

It's the nation's worst disaster since the catastrophic magnitude 9.0 quake and tsunami that struck late in December 2004.

The quake's epicenter was along the coast of Java near the ancient city of Yogyakarta, about 250 miles (400 kilometers) east of the capital Jakarta. It struck near the Merapi volcano, which has been erupting with lava and ash in recent weeks. The volcano spat out thick clouds of ash soon after the earthquake struck.

The quake struck only six miles (ten kilometers) below the surface. Shaking from the shallow quake flattened thousands of houses and other buildings, creating scenes of total devastation. The worst destruction was in the town of Bantul, where 80 percent of the homes were destroyed and about 3,000 people were killed.

Across the Yogyakarta area, frightened residents ran out into the streets. False rumors spread that a tsunami was on its way and thousands of people rushed to find higher ground. Damages were heavy in the densely-packed city of Yogyakarta. The city is home to the 1,000-year old Prambanan temple, a United Nations world heritage site. The temple was damaged but is still standing.

Earthquakes and volcanoes often occur along subduction zones where one of Earth's tectonic plates plunges below another. The Indo-Australian plate dives under the Eurasian plate along the Java Trench found in the Indian Ocean off Java's southern coast.