A series of shallow yet powerful earthquakes rattled a sparsely populated island chain in eastern Indonesia on Wednesday, with no immediate reports of damage or casualties, relayed various international news outlets.
According to the U.S. Geological Survey, a 6.9 magnitude earthquake struck an area 341 kilometers (211 miles) southwest of Tual–a coastal town in Maluku province–at a depth of 10 kilometers (6.2 miles). This was followed by another 7.0 magnitude quake in the same area and two 5.1 magnitude aftershocks.
Indonesia’s Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysical Agency stated that there was no threat of a tsunami but cautioned about potential aftershocks.
National Disaster Mitigation Agency spokesperson Abul Muhari reported that residents in the Tanimbar Islands felt strong tremors for a few minutes–but that there was no panic–noting that the epicenter of the quakes was located in the Banda Sea near the Tanimbar Islands, which has a population of about 127,000.
Indonesia, with a population of more than 270 million, is frequently hit by earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and tsunamis due to its location within the arc of volcanoes and fault lines in the Pacific Basin known as the “Ring of Fire.”
A 9.1 magnitude Indian Ocean quake triggered a tsunami in 2004 and claimed more than 230,000 lives in a dozen countries, with the majority of the casualties occurring in Indonesia’s Aceh province.