6.8 magnitude quake strikes off eastern Indonesia, no tsunami alert issued

An earthquake with a magnitude of 6.8 rocked Indonesia's eastern North Maluku province on Thursday, but did not potentially trigger a tsunami, the meteorology and geophysics agency said here.

The agency initially issued the quake at 7.1 magnitude before revising it down to 6.8, said Wahyu Kurniawan, official in charge at the agency.

The quake jolted at 15:49 p.m. Jakarta time (0849 GMT) with epicenter at 89 km northwest Daruba village of Pulau Marotai district and the depth at 112 km under sea bed, the official said.

"For this quake, we did not issue a tsunami warning," he told Xinhua via phone.

The intensity of the quake was felt at III to IV MMI (Modified Mercally Intensity) in Ternate city of the province, said Kurniawan.

Indonesia has been frequently hit by earthquake as it sits on a vulnerable quake-impacted zone called "the Pacific Ring of Fire."