Powerful quake in Molucca Sea triggers panic, building collapse in Manado; dozens of aftershocks recorded as regional tsunami alert called off
JAKARTA – A major 7.4-magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of eastern Indonesia on Thursday, killing one person, damaging buildings, and sending terrified residents fleeing into the streets. A tsunami warning issued in the aftermath has since been lifted.
The early-morning tremor in the Molucca Sea, between the Sulawesi and Maluku island groups, generated waves of up to 75 centimetres (2.5 feet) in some locations, according to Indonesia’s BMKG geological agency. The Hawaii-based Pacific Tsunami Warning Center (PTWC) initially warned of hazardous tsunami waves within 1,000 kilometres (621 miles) of the epicentre but lifted the warning just over two hours later, confirming the threat “has now passed”.
One Confirmed Dead
A 58-year-old street food vendor in Manado, Siti Rohayati, described the terror of the moment the quake hit during the breakfast rush. “I didn’t know what to do. I was just trying to save my family. All that mattered was getting my children away safely. I pushed all three of them and told them: ‘Run!'”
Search and rescue official George Leo Mercy Randang told AFP that one person was killed when a building collapsed in Manado, the capital of North Sulawesi province. Another person was injured. The victim was “buried under the rubble,” Randang said, adding that authorities were investigating reports of additional casualties.
Panic and Aftershocks
The US Geological Survey (USGS) reported that the quake struck at a shallow depth of 35 kilometres (22 miles), which typically amplifies ground shaking.
Budi Nurgianto, a 42-year-old resident of Ternate in North Maluku province, described the moment the tremor hit. “The quake was felt strongly. I heard it first from the walls of the house that shook,” he said. “When I went outside, there were many people outside. They were panicked. The quake was felt quite long, more than a minute. I even saw some people leaving their house without having finished their shower.”
Dozens of aftershocks rippled through the area following the main quake, according to Teuku Faisal Fathani, head of Indonesia’s geological agency. USGS data showed one aftershock measuring magnitude 5.9.
On-the-Ground Account
An AFP journalist in Manado, a city of approximately 450,000 people located about 300 kilometres west of Ternate by sea, said the shaking woke him and others. “I immediately woke up and left my house. People were immediately scrambling outside. There is a school and the pupils rushed outside,” he said. The shaking persisted for “quite long,” but he did not witness “significant damage.”
Regional Alerts Lifted
Elevated waves were observed in nine locations across North Maluku, North Sulawesi, and Gorontalo provinces, with the highest – 75 centimetres – recorded in North Minahasa.
The PTWC had initially warned that tsunami waves of up to one metre were possible for parts of Indonesia, with smaller waves possible for the Philippines, Malaysia, Japan, Taiwan, Guam, and Palau. However, the Japan Meteorological Agency said it expected only “slight changes” in sea level along the Pacific coast and did not issue any warnings. Earthquake monitoring centres in the Philippines and Malaysia also did not issue tsunami alerts.
‘Ring of Fire’ Seismic Activity
Indonesia and neighbouring countries experience frequent earthquakes due to their location on the Pacific “Ring of Fire” – an arc of intense seismic activity where tectonic plates collide, stretching from Japan through Southeast Asia and across the Pacific basin.
In 2004, a catastrophic magnitude-9.1 earthquake struck Indonesia’s westernmost Aceh province, triggering a massive tsunami that killed more than 170,000 people in Indonesia alone.
