Powerful earthquake hits off northern Indonesia

By Ainur Rohmah

TUBAN, Indonesia

A powerful earthquake struck off northern Indonesia on early Saturday.

The magnitude 7.2 tremor hit 210 kilometers (130 miles) northwest of the Sangihe Islands in North Sulawesi province at a depth of 41.7 km at 3.23 a.m. (0823GMT), National Disaster Management Agency spokesman Sutopo Purwo Nugroho said.

The U.S Geological Survey downgraded its own assessment of the magnitude to 6.8.

Nugroho said Indonesia's Geological Agency issued and then lifted a tsunami warning.

"Until now, there have been no reports of 7.2 earthquake impacts on Indonesian territory, either casualties or damaged buildings," Nugroho said.

On Dec. 7, a magnitude 6.5 temblor rocked the north of Sumatra island, leaving 104 people dead and tens of thousands displaced in Aceh province.

Indonesia lies within the Pacific’s "Ring of Fire", where tectonic plates collide and cause frequent seismic and volcanic activity.

On Dec. 26, 2004, a magnitude 9.1 earthquake struck the eastern coast of Sumatra, causing a tsunami that killed around 230,000 people as it tore along the coasts of Sri Lanka, India, Malaysia, and Thailand.