TSUNAMI WARNING In Indonesia LIFTED After Large Earthquake

INDONESIA’S meteorology and geophysics agency said in a message on its Twitter account it had lifted a tsunami alert after a powerful earthquake struck near the Moluccas islands on Thursday.

According to the U.S. Geological Survey the earthquake had a magnitude of 7.1 and struck 139 km (86 miles) north-west of the city of Ternate at a depth of 45 km. Earlier, the agency had put the magnitude at 7.4.

A short-range tsunami warning was issued in response. Its epicentre was more than 100 kilometres offshore.

According to reports by ANS-CBN News, the earthquake prompted panicked islanders to flee to higher ground,

The quake was also felt strongly on the island of Sulawesi, to the west of the epicentre.

Social media users were quick to update messages and tweets about the incident. Indah Lengkong, a resident of port city of Bitung in North Sulawesi, said by text message: “The house was visibly shaking.”

Twitter user @inritaehyungie, who lives in Tondano in North Sulawesi, also felt the quake strongly: “The earth was literally shaking so hard,”

Metro TV said some residents had fled to higher ground in the North Moluccas.

The Indonesian Meteorology, Climate and Geophysics agency (BMKG) announced early on Friday (local time) that it was lifting the tsunami warning.

Earlier this year, Indonesia was hit by a 7.2 magnitude earthquake, which struck the island of Halmahera, North Maluku.

The earthquake caused millions of pounds worth of damage, killing more than a dozen people and injuring over 100, while more than 50,000 people were displaced.

Indonesia is situated on the so-called Ring of Fire in the basin of the Pacific Ocean, where many volcano eruptions and earthquakes strike.