A powerful earthquake of 6.9 magnitude rocked the southern coast of Indonesia’s heavily populated Java island on Friday, with the country’s geophysics agency issuing a tsunami warning.
As per the report from the United States Geological Survey, the 6.8 magnitude quake struck offshore at a depth 42 kilometres (26 miles), some 150 kilometres (90 miles) from Labuan, southwest of the capital Jakarta. Indonesia’s disaster agency initially pegged the quake at magnitude 7.4 and a depth of 10 kilometres, warning it could spark a tsunami.
There were no instant reports of damage or casualties.
People in Jakarta fled their homes as buildings in the megacity swayed from the force of the quake. “The chandelier in my apartment was shaking and I just ran from the 19th floor,” 50-year-old Elisa told.
Indonesia experiences periodic seismic and volcanic activity because of its position on the Pacific “Ring of Fire”, where tectonic plates collide.
A year back , a very powerful 7.5-magnitude quake and a subsequent tsunami in Palu on Sulawesi island killed more than 2,200 people and thousands gone missing.
A devastating 9.1-magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of Sumatra on December 26, 2004and triggered a tsunami that killed 220,000 across the Indian Ocean region which includes around 170,000 in Indonesia.
