Aftershocks will be felt along Sumatra's west coast for the next two weeks as a result of Wednesday's earthquake, a seismologist said Saturday.

The tectonic earthquake measuring 7,9 on the Richter Scale which shocked Bengkulu province on Wednesday (Sept 12) has caused more than rp500 billion in material loss, a statement said.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and his wife Mrs. Ani Yudhoyono left for Bengkulu at 7 am on Monday to observe affected areas in Bengkulu and West Sumatra that were hit by a quake measuring 7.9 on the Richter scale last Wednesday afternoon.

Accompanied by Minister for Public Works Djoko KIrmanto, Minister for Health Siti Fadilah Supari, Commander of the Indonesian Armed Forces Air Marshal Djoko Suyanto, cabinet Secretary Sudi Silalahi, the president left Halim Perdanakusuma Air Force base on board of a special aircraft, Boeing 737-500.

Social Affairs Minister Bachtiar Chamsyah assured here on Sunday that there was enough supply of rice for quake victims including for those in Bengkulu.

"Rice supply is secured. The problem is transporting and distributing them," he said after meeting with Bengkulu governor Agusrin Maryono Najamuddin.

Another aftershock rattled West Sumatra's west coastal areas at around 4 p.m on Sunday. The tremor that had its epicenter southwest of Bengkulu made many residents to run out of their homes for fear.

Meteorology and Geophysics Agency staff in Padang Panjang Fitri said as many as 18 tremors had been recorded since 00.00 hours, four of them measuring four to five on the Richter scale. She said the intensity of the aftershocks that followed three major earthquakes last week had dropped and therefore she appealed to the people not to panic.