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Frantic rescue underway in Indonesia as quake kills scores

A mosque minaret in Pidie, Indonesia, collapsed early Wednesday after a magnitude-6.5 earthquake struck Aceh province.ZIAN MUTTAQIEN/AFP/Getty Images

MEUREUDU, Indonesia (AP) — A strong earthquake rocked Indonesia’s Aceh province early Wednesday, killing nearly 100 people and sparking a frantic rescue effort in the rubble of dozens of collapsed and damaged buildings.

Maj. Gen. Tatang Sulaiman, chief of the army in Aceh province, said at least 97 died while four people were pulled from the rubble alive. Another four or five are known to be buried, but he didn’t say if they were dead or alive.

The rescue effort involving thousands of search officials, villagers, soldiers and police is concentrated on Meureudu, a severely affected town in Pidie Jaya district near the epicenter. Excavators were trying to remove debris from shop houses and other buildings where people were believed buried. TV footage showed rescuers in orange uniforms shining flashlights into the interiors of broken buildings as they searched for signs of life.

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The province’s disaster mitigation agency said more than 600 people were injured. The national disaster agency said some 245 buildings were seriously damaged or destroyed, mostly in Pidie Jaya, including 14 mosques. The rest were mainly dwellings and shop houses. Roads also cracked and power poles toppled over.

The U.S. Geological Survey said the 6.5-magnitude earthquake struck at 5:03 a.m. and was centered about 19 kilometers (12 miles) southeast of Sigli, a town near the northern tip of Aceh, at a depth of 17 kilometers (11 miles). The agency had initially placed the epicenter undersea. It did not generate a tsunami.

For Acehnese, the quake was a terrifying reminder of their region’s vulnerability to natural disasters. More than 100,000 died in Aceh after a Dec. 26, 2004, earthquake triggered a devastating tsunami.

‘‘It was very bad, the tremors felt even stronger than the 2004 earthquake,’’ said Musman Aziz, a Meureudu resident. ‘‘I was so scared the tsunami was coming.’’

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Aiyub Abbas, the chief of Pidie Jaya district, said there was urgent need for emergency supplies and excavation equipment to move heavy debris. Footage showed rescue personnel taking bodies in black bags away from the rubble.

Muhammad Reza Faisal, director of the general hospital in Pidie Jaya, said the facility was overwhelmed with the numbers of injured and many people were being treated in tents pitched on its grounds. He said five of the quake victims died at the hospital.

In the capital, Jakarta, President Joko ‘‘Jokowi’’ Widodo said he had ordered all government agencies to take part in the rescue efforts for Aceh, a conservative province that has considerable autonomy from the central government under a peace deal with separatists.

The Red Cross Indonesia deployed emergency response teams and advertised bank accounts for donations. The International Organization for Migration said it sent an assessment team to Aceh.

Seaside resident Fitri Abidin in Pidie Jaya said she fled with her husband and wailing children to a nearby hill after the quake jolted the family awake. They stayed there for several hours until authorities reassured them there was no tsunami risk.

‘‘It terrified me. I was having difficulty breathing or walking,’’ Abidin said.

She said her husband grabbed hold of her and carried her out of the house.

The family’s house didn’t collapse but the homes of some neighbors did and Abidin is afraid three friends were buried in the rubble.

In Pidie Jaya’s neighboring district of Bireuen, a teacher at an Islamic school died after being hit by falling debris, said health worker Achmad Taufiq.

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The world’s largest archipelago, Indonesia is prone to earthquakes due to its location on the Pacific ‘‘Ring of Fire,’’ an arc of volcanoes and fault lines in the Pacific Basin. The 2004 quake and tsunami killed a total of 230,000 people in a dozen countries, most of them in Aceh.

Major General Tatang Sulaiman, chief of the army in Aceh province, told a TV station that the death toll was at 97.

The rescue effort involving villagers, soldiers and police is concentrated on Meureudu, a severely affected town in Pidie Jaya district. Excavators were trying to remove debris from shop houses and other buildings where people were believed buried.

More than 40 buildings including several mosques were flattened in the district located 11 miles southwest of the epicenter, according to Aiyub Abbas, the district chief. Roads also cracked and power poles toppled over.

Abbas said there is an urgent need for excavation equipment to move heavy debris and emergency supplies. TV footage showed rescue personnel taking bodies in black bags away from the rubble.

The US Geological Survey said the shallow magnitude-6.5 earthquake that struck at 5:03 a.m. local time was centered about 6 miles north of Reuleut, a town in northern Aceh, at a depth of 11 miles. It did not generate a tsunami.

For Acehnese, the quake was another terrifying reminder of their region’s vulnerability to natural disasters. More than 100,000 died in Aceh after the Dec. 26, 2004, earthquake triggered a devastating tsunami.

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‘‘It was very bad, the tremors felt even stronger than 2004 earthquake,’’ said Musman Aziz, a Meureudu resident. ‘‘I was so scared the tsunami was coming.’’

In the capital Jakarta, President Joko ‘‘Jokowi’’ Widodo said he has ordered all government agencies to take part in the rescue efforts.

Seaside resident Fitri Abidin in Pidie Jaya said she fled with her husband and wailing children to a nearby hill after the quake jolted the family awake early in the morning. They stayed there for several hours until authorities reassured them there was no tsunami risk.

‘‘It terrified me. I was having difficulty breathing or walking,’’ said Abidin.

She said her husband grabbed hold of her and carried her out of the house.

The family’s house didn’t collapse but the homes of some neighbors did, and Abidin is afraid three friends were buried in building collapses.

In Pidie Jaya’s neighboring district of Bireuen, a teacher at an Islamic building school died after being hit by falling debris, said health worker Achmad Taufiq.

About 20 people were being treated at a health center and one person was moved to a hospital because of broken bones and a head injury, said Taufiq.

Residents of the nearby town of Lhokseumawe ran out of their houses in panic during the quake and many people fled to higher ground.

The world’s largest archipelago, Indonesia is prone to earthquakes due to its location on the Pacific ‘‘Ring of Fire,’’ an arc of volcanoes and fault lines in the Pacific Basin. The 2004 quake and tsunami killed a total of 230,000 people in a dozen countries, many of them in Aceh.

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Kotarumalos reported from Jakarta, Indonesia. Associated Press journalists Stephen Wright and Niniek Karmini in Jakarta and Ayi Yufridar in Bireuen, Indonesia, contributed to this report.