WA earthquake damages schools, hotels

(AAP) - The biggest earthquake to hit the West Australian Goldfields damaged historic buildings, closed schools and forced the evacuation of mines.

Measuring 5.0 on the Richter Scale, it struck the twin cities of Kalgoorlie-Boulder
at about 8.20am (WST) on Tuesday. It's centre was a couple of kilometres southwest
of Kalgoorlie, 600km east of Perth.
No one was seriously injured but buildings were damaged, many of them pubs in
Boulder's main road, Burt Street,
A section of the street has been closed.
The Golden Eagle Hotel's balcony collapsed and Laurie Ayers, who owns the
Recreational Hotel, known as 'The Rec', said every wall at the century-old building
was cracked.
"It's a big repair job," he said.
"I'm not a structural engineer or a builder but it all looks pretty solid - I think
it's just going to be a very good repair bill.
"These old buildings, they're pretty well-made."
The quake also damaged some schools, now closed for safety checks.
A ceiling collapse and other damage at the Boulder Primary School forced students
and teachers to seek safety until parents arrived to collect children.
Firefighters were also called to a gas leak in Boulder.
Two people were treated in hospital for minor injuries attributed to the quake.
A physiotherapist feared his teenage receptionist, who was buried under rubble, was
dead.
Therapist Gavin Corica was working in another room of the Goldfields Physiotherapy
Service practice in Boulder, when a tremor occurred.
"I thought a bulldozer was going through the front. That's what it felt like. I mean
the ground was shaking so much," Mr Corica said.
The tin roof, part of the walls and an air-conditioning unit all collapsed, bringing
down with them part of the ceiling and metal.
Mr Corica said that after the dust had settled in the darkened room, fearing the
worst, he frantically began searching for the 19-year-old receptionist.
"I couldn't find her initially. I ran out and there was this massive dust cloud and
the power went out ..." he said.
"When the dust cleared there was just rubble and I was thinking: 'I'm going to be
pulling out a dead body from this place'."
"I'm really glad she had the sense to get under the desk," Mr Corica said.
"She was a very lucky girl.
The receptionist had told Mr Corica she thought she was in heaven when she came to
because she could see the sky, he said.
Mr Corsica said she had been discharged from hospital after being twice checked over.
"She's very sore and very unsteady. Obviously, suffering from a bit of concussion I
would say," he said.
Geoscience Australia's senior seismologist Dr David Jepsen said people reported
feeling the 5.0 tremor up to 200km away, and there were reports of building damage
within a 10km radius.
"This is quite a large earthquake for Australia and a shallow, potentially damaging,
earthquake," he said.
The previous largest quake in the Goldfields was 4.5 on the Richter Scale, in 1987.
The 1989 Newcastle earthquake in NSW measured 5.6.
Australia's largest tremor, measuring 7.2 on the Richter scale, hit WA's Meeberrie
station in 1941.
Hundreds of mine workers were evacuated after Tuesday's quake.
Australia's largest open-cut mine, the Super Pit gold mine in the heart of
Kalgoorlie, was temporarily shut.
Workers were also evacuated from the Mount Charlotte underground mine.
There were no injuries or damage reported at the sites.
Assessment teams have been inspecting them to determine when crews can return to
work - possibly as early as Tuesday night for some.
WA Premier Colin Barnett said everyone was thankful there was no serious injury or
loss of life.
"Nothing too great, it's in control. We are just working with the local council to
make sure everything is returned to normal," he told Sky News.
Kalgoorlie-Boulder councillor Beth Richardson said she first thought the rumbling
and shaking was a regular mine blast.
"Then I thought: 'That's unusual'. And then, it just kept going. I thought: 'Oh, my
goodness, is the ground opening up?'
"It's just so scary when you hear things drop and things go in your house.
"I grabbed on to the buffet and thought: My goodness, what the heck is that?"
A number of smaller aftershocks were felt after the main quake.
Residents in the city were told to turn off gas and power, and were told not to use
matches, cigarette lighters or naked flames because of potential gas leaks.
A number of roads in the town have been closed while the damage is assessed.
Parents of Boulder Primary School students have been asked to keep their children at
home on Wednesday while the school is cleaned up and repairs completed.
Goldfields schools director Larry Hamilton said the damage was not as bad as
previously thought and a full clean-up would occur on Wednesday to ensure buildings
are safe.
"Any parents who cannot make alternative arrangements can still send their students
to school and they will be supervised in a safe area," Mr Hamilton said.
"However, to help us complete the clean-up and repairs as swiftly as possible, we
would be very grateful if parents can keep students at home on Wednesday."
Classes are expected to return to normal on Thursday, he said.