KUALA LUMPUR — Tourists were injured and scores stranded on one of Southeast Asia's highest mountains on Friday when a 6.0-magnitude earthquake rocked parts of the Malaysian state of Sabah on Borneo island.
The US Geological Survey said the quake struck at around 6.15am Bangkok time at a depth of 10 kilometres, with its epicentre located about 54 kilometres east of Kota Kinabalu, capital of Sabah.
The force of the tremor was so strong that it snapped off one of the two "donkey's ears" rock outcroppings that form a distinctive part of the peak's craggy profile, sending it crashing into a gully, tourism minister for Sabah state Masidi Manjun said on his Twitter feed.
Bad news confirmed! part of the iconic 'Donkey's Ear' @Mount Kinabalu is gone due to strong tremor this morning pic.twitter.com/Mhrqr5k1fN
— Masidi Manjun (@MasidiM) June 5, 2015
Foreign and domestic hikers flock to Sabah to climb the 4,095-metre Mount Kinabalu, where at least 145 people were trapped, the New Strait Times newspaper reported, citing officials.
"Rescuers operations underway at Mt Kinabalu," Mr Masidi tweeted. "There were reports of climbers trapped and injured."
Kyodo News reported that stranded climbers were airlifted off the peak around 12.30pm Bangkok time.
State officials were quoted by the New Straits Times saying at least four climbers had suffered injuries including broken bones and head wounds. It was not clear how seriously the tourists were injured and how they were stranded but Mr Manjun said all climbing had been cancelled as loose boulders were falling after the quake.
Facebook user “Charlene DMP” posted this photo of fellow climbers on Mt Kinabalu in Malaysia waiting for rescue Friday after a 6.0-magnitude earthquake hit the region.
One climber, identified as Charlene Dmp, posted pictures of hikers on top of the mountain.
"Currently we are waiting for the helicopter to save us," she said.
There were no reports major damage or injuries from the earthquake elsewhere in Sabah. No tsunami warning was issued.
Colin Forsythe, a resident of Kota Kinabalu, said the quake lasted around 15 seconds and felt "as if a truck had crashed into a brick wall."
Local media reports said residents throughout the quake-affected region fled in panic from homes and buildings, including Kota Kinabalu's International Airport.
Social media users uploaded photos showing damaged roads, shattered storefront windows, cracked walls and floors, and rooms strewn with debris flung from shelves.
Major earthquakes are rare in Malaysia, which lies just outside the Ring of Fire, the belt of seismic activity running around the Pacific basin.
Some Malaysian social-media users posited that the quake was a retaliation by the spirits angered by a group of 10 apparently Western men and women who snapped and uploaded nude photos from Mount Kinabalu, which is sacred to the local Kadazun Dusun tribal group.