At least 70 people killed in Indonesian quake

Bangkok, Mar 6 (UNI) An earthquake struck Indonesia's Sumatra island today, leaving at least 70 people dead and hundreds injured sending emergency operations into full swing.

The earthquake estimated at 5.8 on the Richter scale by Indonesian meteorological office, hit at 1049 hrs, local time.

The quake, followed by an aftershock of the same intensity two hours later, was also felt in Malaysia and Singapore, leading to evacuations from high rise buildings.

The casualties could rise as people were still being evacuated from the debris of collapsed buildings, reports from Jakarta quoted local officials as saying.

The US Geological Survey rated the two shocks at 6.3 and 6.1 respectively.

Indonesia lies on a highly seismic oceanic trench region in the Pacific Basin. A magnitude 9 plus temblor off Sumatra in December 2004 triggered a tsunami that devastated several countries along the Indian Ocean, killing nearly a quarter million people.

UNI