Riau residents feel the shocks waves of Padangsidempuan earthquake

Pekanbaru (ANTARA News) - The people of Riau living in Rokan Hilir (Rohil) regency and Dumai city felt the shocks of an earthquake which struck Padangsidempuan, North Sumatra, Monday at 9:26 p.m West Indonesia time.

"The quake struck Padangsidempuan with a magnitude of 6.1 on the Richter sacle, and its shock waves reached nearby Riau," Head of the Meteorology and Geophysics Agency in Riau ,Blucher Doloksaribu, said here on Monday night.

He said that the epicenter of the tremor lay in a depth of 10 kilometers at 1.68 degrees North Latitude and 99.19 degrees East Longitude 35 kilometers northwest of Padang Sidempuan.

In the meantime, people in Bagan Siapi-api (Rohil) and Dumai city said the shocks were rather strong.

"I felt that my house was moving. We immediately rushed outside," Anita (28), a Bagan Siapi-api resident, said.

When the quake struck, she and her family were watching television. Ardy (30) a Dumai resident said he felt that the earth was moving when he was having a get-together with friends.

The tremor also struck Pekanbaru, but the people did not feel anything. (*) end