Helicopter crash, aftershock rock tsunami aid effort

At least four crew were injured when a US navy Sea Hawk helicopter carrying aid crashed into a paddy field shortly after dawn as it flew from the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier moored off the Sumatra coast, officials said.

Navy relief operations on the northern tip of Sumatra, where more than 100,000 people were killed in last month's disaster, were briefly suspended following the crash, the cause of which was not immediately known.

US navy spokesman John Bernard said all 10 people on board survived and had been returned to the Lincoln for medical attention.

Dozens of US military aircraft and vessels were rushed to Indonesia, the country worst affected by the December 26 catastrophe, to take part in one of the largest ever international humanitarian operations.

The helicopters have been a lifeline for many people trapped in isolated stretches of coastline obliterated by the full force of the onrushing water.

Despite the unprecedented aid effort, rescue workers fear some survivors in more isolated parts of Aceh may still be awaiting help.

The first United Nations team -- totalling five people -- arrived in the remote west coast town of Meulaboh on Sumatra two weeks after it was almost totally destroyed by the tsunami.

The UN, racing to prevent outbreaks of disease, said it was rushing vaccines to Aceh after confirming a case of measles.

"Vaccinations against measles are a priority," said Shannon Strother of the UN's Children's Fund. "We have already one case of measles confirmed here.

In an ominous reminder of the trigger of the tragedy, a strong earthquake was recorded off Sumatra at 6:18 am (2218 GMT Sunday) close to the site of the massive quake that unleashed the tsunamis, the Hong Kong Observatory said.

The earthquake, with its epicentre initially determined to be at sea about 60km southwest of Banda Aceh, the capital of Aceh province, was estimated to measure 6.2 on the Richter scale, the observatory said in a statement.

Meanwhile, with billions of dollars already promised in aid, French Finance Minister Herve Gaymard said the Paris Club of creditor nations had also agreed on a moratorium on debt repayments for countries hit by the tsunami.