© Antara Foto/Reuters
People look at the damaged office of governor of West Sulawesi following an earthquake in Mamuju, West Sulawesi province.
At least 34 people have been killed and hundreds injured following a strong earthquake that shook Indonesia's Sulawesi island early on Friday morning, prompting landslides and destroying houses.
Thousands of people fled their homes to seek safety when the 6.2-magnitude earthquake hit just after 1am local time on Friday morning. The epicentre was six kilometres north-east of Majene city in West Sulawesi.
Hundreds of buildings have been destroyed or damaged, including a hospital, which has collapsed with more than a dozen patients and staff remain trapped beneath it.
"The hospital is flattened," said Arianto, who goes by one name, from the rescue agency in Mamuju city, near to Majene. Rescuers were also trying to reach a family of eight buried beneath the rubble of their destroyed home, he added.
The death toll includes 26 people in Mamuju city. "That number could grow but we hope it won't," said Ali Rahman, head of the local disaster mitigation agency. "Many of the dead are buried under rubble."
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