6.9-magnitude quake strikes off central Indonesia, no casualties reported

JAKARTA - A 6.9-magnitude earthquake rocked East Nusa Tenggara province in central Indonesia on Friday, with no damage or casualties reported so far, the meteorological agency said.

The agency did not issue a warning for a tsunami.

The quake struck at 11:09 a.m. local time (0409 GMT), and the epicenter, with a depth of 670 km, was located 171 km northeast off the coast of Larantuka, a sub-district of Flores Timur district in the province, according to the agency.

The intensity of the quake was felt at III to IV MMI (Modified Mercally Intensity) in Waingapu town of East Nusa Tenggara province, III MMI in Mataram, the capital city of nearby West Nusa Tenggara province, and II to III MMI in Bima city of West Nusa Tenggara province, as well as Seram district and Banda islands in the eastern Maluku province.

There were no reports of damage or casualties caused by the quake in Waingapu, said Anita Manjauru, head of the Emergency Unit of the Disaster Management Agency in Sumba Timur district.

"The situation is calm here, and no houses or buildings are damaged and no residents are injured," she told Xinhua.

Over 500 people were killed along with huge property damage when a series of strong quakes, one of them being 7.0 magnitude, rocked West Nusa Tenggara province in 2018.

Indonesia has been frequently struck by earthquakes as it lies on a vulnerable quake-impacted zone called "the Pacific Ring of Fire."