Powerful 7.4 quake strikes Indonesia, triggers tsunami alert, leaves one dead
Jakarta — A magnitude 7.4 earthquake struck off Indonesia’s Ternate island in the Northern Molucca Sea on Thursday, damaging buildings and triggering a temporary tsunami alert, with at least one person killed in the city of Manado, authorities and local media reported.
The United States Geological Survey said the offshore quake was followed by aftershocks reaching magnitudes of up to 5. Indonesia’s meteorology agency reported small tsunami waves of 0.3 meters in West Halmahera and 0.2 meters in Bitung.
The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center initially issued a regional tsunami alert but lifted it about two hours later, stating that the threat had passed based on available data.Local broadcaster Metro TV reported that one person died after being struck by falling rubble in Manado, in North Sulawesi province.
Indonesian officials confirmed the casualty, saying the victim was buried under debris from a collapsed building. One additional person suffered a leg injury.Residents described scenes of panic as the quake struck, with people fleeing their homes. A Manado resident said the shaking lasted for a prolonged period, causing items to fall from shelves and cutting power in some areas, though no major structural damage was visible in her neighborhood.
Authorities reported damage to several buildings in North Sulawesi, though the full extent remained unclear. Regional officials in areas including Ternate and Tidore urged residents to prepare for possible evacuations in the immediate aftermath.
Tsunami warning agencies had cautioned that hazardous waves were possible along coastlines within 1,000 km of the epicenter, including parts of Indonesia, the Philippines and Malaysia.
Subsequent assessments by authorities in both countries indicated no significant threat to their territories.Indonesia, an archipelago of more than 280 million people, lies along the seismically active Pacific Ring of Fire, where tectonic plate interactions frequently trigger earthquakes and volcanic activity.
In recent history, the country has experienced some of the world’s deadliest seismic disasters, including the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami that killed more than 230,000 people across multiple countries, and a 2018 quake and tsunami in Sulawesi that claimed over 4,300 lives.
