Padang (ANTARA News) - Padang city in West Sumatra requires as many as 662 study tents to support ongoing efforts to normalize schooling activity after the magnitude-7.6 earthquake that devastated the city nine days ago, a local eduction official said.

The tents are urgently needed because more than 700 classrooms in Padang are in heavily damaged condition while the students cannot be deprived of school education for too long," M Nur Amin, head of Padang city`s education office, said in Padang on Saturday.

He said the West Sumatra provincial government had promised to Rp1.6 billion in funds to buy 200 study tents for Padang school students but the money had yet to be disbursed because the damage done to school buildings had yet to be officially verified.

The 7.6-magnitude quake rocked West Sumatra on 30 September 2009 at 17:18 pm at a location 0.84 south latitude, 99.65 East Longitude with the depth of the epicenter 71 km southwest of Pariaman city and 52.5 km northwest of Padang.

The impact of the earthquake, especially in the city of Padang, has resulted in 1.407 casualties including 242 dead, 385 people were seriously injured and slightly injured as many as 780 people.

In addition, some 919 elementary school classrooms were destroyed , 783 are heavily damaged, 715 moderately and 562 classroom lightly damaged.(*)

Source : http://antaranews.com/