At least 37 die in Indonesia quake

JAKARTA: A powerful earthquake rocked Indonesia’s Sulawesi island on Friday, killing at least 37 people, levelling a hospital and severely damaging other buildings, authorities said, as they warned there were people still trapped beneath rubble.

Hundreds were also injured when the 6.2-magnitude quake struck in the early hours, triggering panic among the terrified residents of the island, which was hit by a huge quake and tsunami two and a half years ago that killed thousands.

So far, 29 bodies have been hauled from beneath crumpled buildings in Mamuju, a city of about 110,000 in West Sulawesi province, while another eight were killed south of the area after the quake struck.

Meanwhile, Pakistan expressed deep grief over the loss of lives and properties.“We offer our profound condolences to bereaved families, government and brotherly people of Indonesia and pray for early recovery of those injured,” the Foreign Office said on its Twitter account.