A 7.4-magnitude earthquake hit Indonesia early Thursday, leaving one person dead.
The tremor struck at around 6:48 a.m. local time at a depth of about 22 miles; its epicenter was located roughly 79 miles west-northwest of Ternate, an island in North Maluku province.
At first, officials issued a tsunami warning, warning that dangerous waves could impact areas within about 620 miles of the epicenter, including coastlines in Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines.
Early estimates suggested waves might climb up to around 2 miles higher than normal tide levels in some areas.
A couple of hours later, authorities said there was no longer any tsunami threat.
Indonesia’s disaster agency said people in Bitung, a coastal city on the northern edge of Sulawesi, felt strong shaking that lasted around 10 to 20 seconds; similar tremors were also reported in nearby areas and in Ternate.
Tsunami activity was later picked up at five different sites. The largest wave, measuring about 0 miles high, was recorded in North Minahasa in North Sulawesi province.
Officials also tracked 11 aftershocks following the quake; the strongest reached a magnitude of 5.5.
In North Sulawesi’s Minahasa district, a 70-year-old woman later died from injuries linked to the quake; one other resident was injured.
Photos from the scene showed damage at a sports complex in North Sumatra, with pieces of metal framing and wall panels scattered across the ground outside.
Early checks by officials found what they described as minor to moderate building damage in parts of Ternate, a city of roughly 205,000 people.
There was also damage reported at a church in the Batang Dua Island district; two homes on Ternate Island were also affected.
The United States Geological Survey first estimated the earthquake’s strength at 7.8.
Japan’s meteorological agency said there might be small changes in sea levels along some coastal area, but there was no concern about tsunami damage.
In Manado, North Sulawesi, a journalist said the tremors woke him suddenly and left him rattled.
He said lots of residents were also rushing out into the streets.
He mentioned the shaking lasted for quite some time, though he didn’t notice any serious damage nearby.
Indonesia, home to more than 280 million people, sits along the “Ring of Fire”; this makes it especially vulnerable to earthquakes.
Back in 2022, a 5.6-magnitude quake struck Cianjur in West Java and claimed over 600 lives; it was the deadliest earthquake the country had seen since a 2018 disaster that killed more than 4,300 people.
