A powerful magnitude-7.4 earthquake struck the northern Molucca Sea off the coast of Ternate, Indonesia, early Thursday, the U.S. Geological Survey said. The quake’s epicenter was about 127 kilometers west of Ternate at a relatively shallow depth of roughly 35 kilometers. Dozens of aftershocks followed, including one measured at magnitude 6.2.
The tremor toppled and damaged buildings in Bitung and Manado in North Sulawesi and in Ternate city in North Maluku. Indonesia’s Search and Rescue Agency said a 70-year-old woman was killed when a building collapsed in Manado and another resident was injured; at least three people were hospitalized in Ternate. Search and rescue official George Leo Mercy Randang told AFP the woman had been “buried under the rubble.”
The quake prompted a tsunami warning for Indonesia and neighboring countries, including the Philippines and Malaysia. The U.S. monitoring center warned of possible “hazardous tsunami waves” within 1,000 kilometers (621 miles) of the epicenter. Several monitoring stations around the Molucca Sea recorded waves up to 75 centimeters (30 inches) above normal. Authorities have since lifted the tsunami warning.
Shallow earthquakes like this one typically produce stronger shaking and more surface damage than deeper temblors. Indonesia lies on the Pacific Ring of Fire, a region of frequent seismic and volcanic activity, and officials continue search, rescue and damage assessments in the affected areas.