Indonesia earthquake: 6.9-magnitude quake hits off Sumatra

A strong earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 6.9 has struck off the Indonesian island of Sumatra, seismologists say. No tsunami warnings have been issued.

The earthquake, which struck at 8:37 p.m. local time on Friday, was centered about 200 kilometers southwest of Bengkulu, a city on Sumatra’s west coast, or 670 kilometers northwest of the capital Jakarta.

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) said the shallow earthquake had a preliminary magnitude of 6.9. Indonesia’s seismological agency BMKG put the magnitude slightly lower, at 6.8.

Information about damage or casualties, if any, was not immediately known. BMKG said there was no threat of a tsunami from Friday’s earthquake.

Indonesia is on the so-called ‘Pacific Ring of Fire’, an arc of fault lines circling the Pacific Basin that is prone to frequent and large earthquakes.

A 9.1-magnitude earthquake, one of the most powerful earthquakes ever recorded, struck off the west coast of Sumatra in December 2004, causing a massive tsunami that struck countries across the Pacific Ocean. At least 227,898 people were killed.