Magnitude 6.3 Earthquake in Indonesia Kills 70

JAKARTA, Indonesia — A powerful earthquake flattened hundreds of buildings in western Indonesia on Tuesday, killing at least 70 people and leaving hospitals grappling with scores of injured, officials said.

The number of dead was expected to rise as a result of the magnitude 6.3 quake on Sumatra island, which was followed by powerful aftershocks and was felt hundreds of miles away in Singapore, where some office buildings were evacuated, and in neighboring Malaysia.

"Women were crying out in terror. We all just fled as quickly as we could," said Alpion, a welder in the seaside town of Padang. Along with thousands of others, he was fleeing to higher ground, fearing a possible tsunami. Authorities said the quake did not cause any tidal activity.

Indonesian Cabinet Secretary Sudi Silalahi told reporters at least 70 people had been killed by the quake, the latest in a series of natural disasters to strike Indonesia in recent months.

The worst-hit area appeared to be in and around Solok, a bustling town close to the epicenter of the quake on Sumatra's western coast, which was spared destruction in the 2004 Asian tsunami disaster.

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