7-magnitude earthquake strikes Indonesia

JAKARTA - An earthquake measuring 7 on the Richter scale struck the eastern Indonesian islands Sunday morning in North Maluku province, but there were no immediate reports of injuries or damage, meteorologists said.

The quake took place at a depth of 56 km, 2,430 km north-east of Jakarta. It occurred at 7:57 A.M. Jakarta time (0627 IST), the Indonesian Meteorology and Geophysics Agency (BMG) said.

The BMG said the quake did not trigger a tsunami.

It was the latest in a series of earthquakes to jolt Indonesia in recent weeks. Saturday, a moderate 6-magnitude quake jolted Manokwari in West Papua province, though it caused no casualties or damage.

A 7.6-magnitude quake struck in late September off the western coast of Sumatra, killing thousands and leaving hundreds injured.

A massive 9-magnitude earthquake and subsequent tsunami struck five years ago, leaving more than 170,000 people dead or missing in Indonesia’s Aceh province on the northern end of Sumatra and 500,000 people homeless.