21 Apr 2012

Two quakes strike off Indonesia

4:35 pm on 21 April 2012

Two strong earthquakes struck off the coast of Indonesia on Saturday.

A quake with a magnitude now estimated to be 6.6, struck off Irian Jaya on Saturday afternoon, according to the United States Geological Survey.

It said the quake was recorded 74 miles south-southeast of the town of Manokwari.

Earlier, a 6.1 magnitude earthquake struck off Sumatra Island but no tsunami warning was issued.

The United States Geological Survey says it was 34km deep and 427km southwest of Banda Aceh on the northern tip of Sumatra, at 5.14 am on Saturday (local time).

There are no immediate reports of damage.

Aceh province was shaken by two huge earthquakes on 11 April sparking an Indian ocean-wide tsunami alert. The first was magnitude 8.6 and the other 8.2.