Strong quake hits Indonesia, tsunami warning issued

JAKARTA - A strong quake struck off the western coast of Indonesia’s Sumatra island late Monday, prompting authorities to issue a tsunami warning.

The quake, measuring 7.2 on the Richter scale, jolted the Mentawai islands at about 9.42 p.m. (1442 GMT), the Meteorology, Geophysics and Climatology Agency said.

It said the epicentre was 78 km southwest of Pagai Selatan of Mentawai, off the western coast of West Sumatra, and occurred at a depth of 10 km.

There were no immediate reports of damage or casualties from the quake, the latest of a series to hit Sumatra in recent months.