JAKARTA, July 10 (Xinhuanet) -- At least 50 houses in Palolo and Sigi-Biromaru subdistricts, Donggala district, were seriously damaged following a tectonic earthquake measuring 5.7 on the Richter Scale which rocked the western part of Central Sulawesi on Sunday morning, sources said.

¡¡¡¡Baku-bakulu and Bobo villages were badly hit by the tremor which caused the collapse of six houses, and 30 others were seriously damaged, state-owned news agency Antara quoted the sources as saying.

    A total of 20 houses in Sigi-Biromaru subdistrict were also seriously damaged, they said.

    Some rural public transport drivers said that the houses which collapsed were those hit by a quake measuring 6.2 on the Richter Scale on Jan. 24, 2005.

    No official reports on victims of the quake, which rocked Palu for several minutes from O7:59 a.m., was immediately available.

    The Meteorology and Geophysical Agency in Makassar said that the tectonic quake's epicenter was located between 3.17 degrees south latitude and 119.8 degrees east longitude.

    For fear of tsunami, thousands of people in the Central Sulawesi capital of Palu hurriedly left the city to higher areas in Ngatabaru, Kawatuna, Lasoani, Poboyo, Duyu and Donggala Kodi.

    In the past six months, Palu and Donggala district in Central Sulawesi province have been hit by strong quakes -- the first measuring 6.2 on the Richter Scale struck on Jan. 24, 2005 leavingone person dead, while tens of others injured and hundreds of houses damaged. Enditem