Jakarta (ANTARA) - An earthquake measuring 5.0 on the Richter scale struck Sinabang, the capital of Simeulue District in Aceh Province, on early Tuesday, though no tsunami warning was issued, the Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) stated.

The quake that struck at 00:14 a.m. local time was centered 66 kilometers northwest of Sinabang at a depth of 26 kilometers, the agency confirmed.

The agency has forecast aftershocks may follow the quake.

Indonesia is prone to quakes since it sits on the Pacific Ring of Fire.

The BMKG recorded that 11,573 quakes, with varying magnitudes and depths, had struck the country last year.

Aceh is one of the Indonesian provinces susceptible to quakes.

A quake, measuring 5.4 on the Richter scale, had earlier hit Aceh on Oct 19, though no tsunami warning was issued, according to the local geophysics station.

The temblor came four days after a quake of magnitude 5.2 rattled Meulaboh District in Aceh on Oct 15.

Aceh had borne the brunt of a 9.1-magnitude quake and subsequent tsunami on December 26, 2004, which led to hundreds of thousands of people losing their lives or going missing.


Related news: Earthquake of magnitude 5.3 rattles Banda Aceh


Related news: 5.4-magnitude quake strikes Aceh's Simeulue district


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