Death toll rises to 73 in Indonesia earthquake that saw 28,000 flee their homes

The death toll from an earthquake that struck Indonesia's West Sulawesi province on Friday has risen to 73 as experts warn another quake could trigger a tsunami.

More than 820 people were injured and over 27,800 fled their homes after the 6.2-magnitude quake hit, a spokesman from the disaster mitigation agency (BNPB) said.

Some sought refuge in the mountains, while others rushed to cramped evacuation centres, witnesses said.

BNPB spokesman Raditya Jati said police and military officers have been deployed to crack down on looting in several parts of the region.

An emergency response status, intended to help rescue efforts, has also been put in place for two weeks, he said.

The epicentre of the quake which struck at around 1.30am on Friday was 22 miles south of the city of Mamuju and it had a relatively shallow depth of 11 miles, the United States Geological Survey said.

An aerial picture shows flattened homes in Mamuju, West Sulawesi

The earthquake came after a 5.9-magnitude tremor and at least 26 aftershocks the previous day, in a string of disasters which caused three landslides and damaged bridges to regional hubs such as the city of Makassar.

The tremors also damaged more than 60 homes, two hotels and the provincial governor's office. Electricity in the area is also out.

Jati's comments came as Dwikorita Karnawati, the head of Indonesia's meteorological, climatology and geophysical agency (BMKG), warned that another quake in the region could potentially trigger a tsunami.

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A lot of snow has fallen across the northern Alps this week, with the areas that have seen the most snow being the north-eastern Swiss and far western Austrian Alps, roughly in a line from Andermatt (central Swiss Alps) to St Anton (western Swiss Alps) taking in the likes of Flims, Klosters and the Montafon valley. These areas have seen around 1.5m of new snow since Tuesday, with as much as 2m reported at altitude in one or two favoured spots.

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