STRONG 6.0 MAGNITUDE QUAKE STRIKES SABAH, MALAYSIAN BORNEO

KOTA KINABALU, Sabah, Malaysia -  A strong 6.0-magnitude earthquake rocked my state of Sabah on Malaysia's Borneo island early Friday.
However there was no tsunami warning issued, yet. 
According to US Geological Survey, the quake struck at a depth of 10 kilometers, with its epicenter located 19 kilometers from the town of Ranau and 54 kilometers from Kota Kinabalu in the State of Sabah. 
Apart from the state capital, my area in Tuaran, the tremors were felt in the northern Kudat, Kota Marudu districts and as far away Beaufort in the south.

The tremor, which lasted for about 30 seconds, caused minimal damage to buildings.

According to the Ranau police, several business premises in Ranau town reported shattered windows in the buildings.

Malaysian social media users uploaded photos showing damaged roads, shattered storefront windows, cracked walls  and floors
in Sabah.

Foreign and domestic hikers flock to Sabah to climb the 4,095-metre (13,435 feet) Mount Kinabalu, where at least 145 people were trapped, the New Strait Times newspaper reported. 

Some hikers were reported injured and scores stranded on Mount Kinabalu.
It was not clear how seriously the tourists were injured and how they were stranded.
All climbing activities had been canceled as loose boulders were falling after the quake.

Malaysian authorities began searching for the climbers stranded or injured on Mount Kinabalu.

Major earthquakes are rare in Malaysia, which lies just outside the Ring of Fire, the belt of seismic activity running around the Pacific basin.

Source: AFP

UPDATED NEWS

http://www.themalaymailonline.com/malaysia/article/at-least-one-dead-on-mount-kinabalu-after-earthquake-witness-claims

http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2015/06/06/11-dead-8-missing-on-kinabalu-peak-after-quake-official/ 

http://www.thestar.com.my/News/Nation/2015/06/06/sabah-quake-final-death-tally-19/