Earthquake kills two in Indonesia

An earthquake struck the Indonesian island of Sumatra tonight, killing two people and damaging a number of homes.

The quake, with an estimated magnitude of 5.6, hit the town of Padang Pandjang, said Sunarto, an official with the government’s Geophysics Agency.

He said that two people, an adult and a child, were killed and at least six others were injured by falling rubble.

Several buildings were damaged in the town, about 625 miles north-west of the capital, Jakarta.

People panicked and ran out of their buildings, said Sunarto, who like many Indonesians uses only one name.

Indonesia is prone to earthquakes because of its location on the so-called Pacific Ring of Fire – an arc of volcanic and seismic activity partly encircling the Pacific Basin.