More Quakes in the Archipelago: Indonesia

Candika rang me last night and told me there was a small earthquake off Singaraja late yesterday. Although it only measured 3.3 on the Richter scale it shows signs of increased activity on the tectonic plates yet again.

Meanwhile in Sulawesi to the northeast of Java a 6.6 magnitude undersea quake in Tomini bay sparked a tsunami warning. The quake prompted the governor of Gorontalo to order precautionary evacuations in coastal areas.

He ordered the people on the coastline, through the radio, to evacuate. He also instructed all district heads to evacuate the people from the coast the Governor Fadel Muhammad told ElShinta radio.

There were no immediate reports of tsunamis 30 minutes after the quake struck nor were there details on the number of people evacuated.

Police contacted in various towns along Tomini bay said people ran outside buildings when the earthquake hit but there was no mass panic and no reports of damage or injuries.

The tsunami is just the latest in a string of natural disasters to hit Indonesia over the past two years. About 168,000 Indonesians died in the December 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami.