Aftershocks scare Indonesian quake survivors

by Michael Perry, KERTEN, Indonesia, June 3 (Reuters) Aftershocks rattled Indonesia's quake-ravaged region overnight, spreading panic among thousands of homeless survivors, as aid agencies rushed to send clean water to the area.

Several aftershocks, which Indonesia's Meteorology and Geophysics Agency said registered about magnitude 4, shook the region, sending many survivors running from their makeshift tents.

"Last night and this morning I felt some quakes. I was sleeping. I just ran away, out of the tent," said 40-year-old Hardady, who lives in the village of Kerten, which was reduced to rubble by the quake.

A 6.3 magnitude quake struck Yogyakarta and Central Java provinces last Saturday, killing over 6,200 people and flattening over 100,000 houses. Many in the region are now living in flimsy shelters in front of the piles of rubble that used to be their homes. Aid groups are distributing 65,000 jerry cans with water purification kits in the two provinces, which can provide a family of five with clean water for a month.