An earthquake with a magnitude of 7.3 strikes off the coast of Indonesia

[ASEAN NOW Content Team]

 

According to the United States Geological Survey (USGS), a violent 7.3-magnitude earthquake struck off Indonesia's eastern coast on Tuesday, causing people in adjacent cities to rush into the streets and seek higher ground.

On Indonesia's Flores Island, the quake struck 112 kilometres (69 miles) north of Maumere.
At 10:20 a.m. local time, it struck at a depth of 18.5 kilometres (11 miles) in the Flores Sea, according to the USGS (10:20 p.m. ET).

"Hazardous tsunami waves are possible for coasts located within 1,000 kilometres (621 miles) of the earthquake epicentre," the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center, based in the United States, stated based on preliminary seismic parameters.

 

Dwikorita Karnawati, the head of Indonesia's Meteorological, Climatological, and Geophysical Agency (BMKG), subsequently verified that the tsunami warning had been lifted.

So far, she said, 15 aftershocks have been registered, the biggest of which had a magnitude of 5.6.

If a powerful tremor lasts longer than 10 seconds, residents along the northern coast should seek higher ground, according to Dwikorita.

 

Romanus Woga, the Deputy Head of Sikka Regency, the region closest to the epicentre of the earthquake, told CNN that he felt four or five large tremors that caused people in Maumere city to flee their houses.
People who lived near the coast had fled to higher ground, he said.

Romanus, who is travelling about the city to assess the situation, claims that no structures or homes have been noticeably damaged thus far.

 

With a population of around 90,000 people, Maumere is the capital city of Sikka and the second-largest town on Flores.

 

Indonesia is located on the Pacific Ocean's "Ring of Fire," a stretch of land that is prone to earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.
It runs from Japan and Indonesia on one side of the Pacific to California and South America on the other, making it one of the world's most seismically active zones.

A 7.8 magnitude earthquake and tsunami struck Flores Island in December 1992, killing almost 2,000 people.