Cilacap, Central Java (ANTARA News) - A Cilacap earthquake victim died after suffering from fever at a junior high school used by locals as a temporary shelter here Monday morning.

The 50-year-old Sutrisno died at 9 am local time six hours after the 7.1-magnitude earthquake rocked the area, said Sarijo, a displaced resident.

"Before his death, Sutrisno has suffered from fever since he has took refuge here," Sarijo said.

Sutrisno`s body had been evacuated to a local health center for autopsy before being brought to the house of mourning in Tegalkamulyan village, Cilacap Selatan sub-district, he said.

The strong earthquake that rocked Central Java`s Cilacap district on Monday at 3.06 am had caused massive panic to the local residents, and some of them had even escaped to nearby hills in Ayah sub-district, Kebumen district, Head of Ayah subdistrict, Ahmad Bahrun, said.

Ayah sub-district borders with Nusawungu sub-district in Cilacap district, and they are separated by the Bodo river.

Ahmad Bahrun said many of the residents were also shocked by the strong earthquake.

They rushed out their homes to go to higher ground but later returned to their villages shortly after they stopping receiving tsunami warning, he said.

Ayah sub-district is located near the sea and therefore prone to a tsunami, he said adding that he had yet to know the material loss and damage caused by the earthquake, he said.

Ahmad Lani of the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) said earlier that the strong earthquake`s epicenter was located 10.01 degrees southern latitude, 107.86 degrees eastern longitude, at a depth of 10 km some 293 km southwest of Cilacap.

Various parts of Indonesia are naturally vulnerable to earthquakes because this archipelago is located on what it is called the "ring of fire".

In October 2010, a strong earthquake rocked Mentawai Island, West Sumatra, triggering a deadly tsunami.

The Mentawai earthquake measuring 7.2 on the Richter scale last year killed 427 people and caused 75 others to go missing.

Besides the fatalities, the disaster also seriously injured 325 people and lightly 173 others.
(Uu.R013/H-NG/O001)

Editor: Priyambodo RH
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