A 6.4 magnitude earthquake struck off eastern Indonesia in the early hours of Monday and triggered a brief tsunami alert that was swiftly lifted, according to seismic monitoring organisations.
The quake, which was initially reported at a magnitude of 6.5, was centred 222 kilometres northwest of Saumlaki in the Tanimbar Islands and struck deep at some 171 kilometres below the surface of the earth in the Banda Sea, the US Geological Survey said.
A tsunami alert was initially triggered by the Indian Ocean Tsunami Warning and Mitigation System (IOTWMS).
However IOTWMS followed up with a second bulletin that said there was “no threat to countries in the Indian Ocean.”
The Banda Sea quake was felt in Australia’s northern city of Darwin, according to the country’s weather bureau, but Australia’s Bureau of Meteorology said there was no tsunami threat to the country.
Indonesia sits on the so-called Pacific Ring of Fire, a seismic activity hotspot.
It is frequently hit by quakes, most of them harmless.
Papua New Guinea, located east of Indonesia, is still suffering aftershocks from the powerful magnitude 7.5 quake that rocked its remote mountainous highlands on Feb. 26.
Source: Reuters
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