By DARREN HUNT
Indonesia has been hit by a huge 7.4 magnitude earthquake hitting the Molucca Sea. The powerful quake has also triggered a tsunami alert in the region. Indonesia’s seismological agency issued the tsunami warning for nearby coastlines.
The earthquake hit the region at 12.17am (4.17pm BST) and was measured at 62km deep.
It struck 134 kilometres northwest of the Malaku islands in Indonesia, hitting the Molucca Sea.
The earthquake hit 145km from Bitung City, which has an estimated population of around 190,000.
Also near the vicinity of the earthquake is Manado, 175km from the epicentre, which has a population of over 400,000.
While, 140km east of the epicentre of the earthquake, is Ternate, which has a population of over 200,000.
Just 20 minutes later a powerful aftershock registering 4.8 on the Richter scale struck.
One resident 136km from the epicentre of the earthquake, in Aertembaga, said they felt the impacts of the quake.
They wrote: “It was quite hard. I was trying to open my door, and I couldn’t even insert my key to open my door.”
Another resident in Lihunu, 140km from the epicentre of the earthquake, described the quake as “rather strong shaking and rattling”.
Another witness from Sario, around 175km from the epicentre of the earthquake said they felt it hit.
One witness, around 180km from the epicentre from the earthquake, said the windows “started to shake” as well as the furniture.
They wrote: “It was a strong shaking that I could hear before I felt it.
The quake had a magnitude of 7.1 and struck 139 km (86 miles) northwest of the city of Ternate at a depth of 45 km, according to the US Geological Survey. Earlier, the agency put the magnitude at 7.4.
"Most likely it (a tsunami) won't hit the land, but we still need to be on alert," Rahmat Triyono, an official at Indonesia's geophysics agency, told Kompas TV. He said there had been no reports of damage so far.
The quake was also felt strongly on the island of Sulawesi, to the west of the epicentre.
Indah Lengkong, a resident of port city of Bitung in North Sulawesi, said by text message: "The house was visibly shaking." People in her neighbourhood had initially panicked, she said, adding: "The quake was very strong and lasted for a while. We can still feel tremors but weaker."
Twitter user @inritaehyungie, who lives in Tondano in North Sulawesi, also felt the quake strongly. "The earth was literally shaking so hard," she said.
Metro TV said some residents had fled to higher ground in the North Moluccas.
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