Powerful 6.7 magnitude quake strikes Indonesia’s Java island

Indonesia’s Java island was struck by a powerful, 6.7 magnitude earthquake on Friday afternoon.

The quake hit 52 km off Banten province at a depth of 10 km but did not have the potential to cause a tsunami, the country’s Meteorological, Climatological and Geophysical Agency said. Banten lies southwest of the nation’s capital Jakarta.

Dwikorita Karnawati, head of the Meteorological, Climatological and Geophysical Agency, told Bloomberg that the government is monitoring the surface of the sea even as mathematical models showed there was no potential for a tsunami.

Tremors from the earthquake were felt in Jakarta, West Java and Lampung on the Sumatra islands, reported Reuters.

“I was very scared, suddenly there was a quake and it was so strong,” Jakarta resident Ani, who works as a nanny, said.

Strong tremors shook high rise buildings in Jakarta. “The tremor was horrible … everything in my room was swinging,” Laila Anjasari, a Jakarta resident who lives on the 19th floor of an apartment building told the Associated Press. “We ran out and down the stairs in panic.”

Due to its location on the Pacific Ring of Fire, Indonesia is prone to high seismic activity.

Last month, an undersea earthquake of magnitude 7.3 struck off the coast of Indonesia’s Flores Island, prompting the country’s monitoring agency to issue a tsunami warning, which was later called off.

In January 2021, a powerful 6.2 magnitude earthquake claimed 105 lives and injured close to 6,500 in West Sulawesi province.

(With additional reporting from agencies)