No tsunami warning

Earthquake of magnitude 6.4 off Indonesia’s coast

(Bild: Andrey VP - stock.adobe.com)

A severe earthquake struck off the coast of the Indonesian island of Java on Friday. The quake had a magnitude of 6.4, according to the US earthquake observatory USGS. It occurred off Java's north coast near the island of Bawean at a depth of around eight kilometers.

The tremors, which were also felt in the capital Jakarta, caused people in some cities to flee their homes. No injuries or damage were initially reported. The local authorities did not issue a tsunami warning either. The province of East Java with the metropolis of Surabaya was hit particularly hard.

The state in South East Asia, which consists of more than 17,000 islands, lies on the so-called Pacific Ring of Fire, where several earth plates collide. Earthquakes and volcanic eruptions therefore occur frequently.

In 2018, a magnitude 7.5 quake and subsequent tsunami in Palu on the island of Sulawesi killed more than 2,200 people. At the end of 2004, a magnitude 9.1 earthquake triggered a devastating tsunami in the Indonesian province of Aceh. More than 170,000 people died in Indonesia alone at the time.