Epicenter of the quake that struck at 10:04 p.m. local time was located some 131 kilometers (km) away from Bitung at a depth of 10 km, according to the Jakarta-based Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG).
"We have not yet received reports of casualties or damages," Adelia, an operational staff of the Winangun Geophysics Station in Manado City, was quoted by ANTARA as saying on Friday.
Earthquakes regularly rock various parts of Indonesia since the country lies on the Circum-Pacific Belt, also known as the Ring of Fire, where several tectonic plates meet and cause frequent volcanic and seismic activities.
ANTARA noted that Sulawesi is one of the Indonesian islands vulnerable to earthquakes. The quake that struck several areas of Central Sulawesi Province over these past two years was one of the deadliest earthquakes witnessed by the island.
The 7.4-magnitude earthquake followed by a tsunami that hit the areas of Palu City and the districts of Donggala, Paringi Moutong, and Sigi on Sept 28, 2018, claimed 2,102 lives, injured 4,612, and rendered 680 others missing.
A total of 68,451 homes were seriously damaged, and 78,994 people were displaced.
The authorities and humanitarian workers decided to bury the large number of rotting corpses in mass graves.
Meanwhile, material losses inflicted by the twin deadly disasters were estimated to reach Rp15.29 trillion.
The provincial capital of Palu bore the brunt of the disaster, with material damage and losses recorded at Rp7.6 trillion, or 50 percent of the total estimate, according to the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB).
The material damage and losses in Sigi District were recorded at Rp4.9 trillion, or 32.1 percent; Donggala District at Rp2.1 trillion, or 13.8 percent; and Parigi Moutong District at Rp631 billion, or 4.1 percent.
The material damage in the four affected areas reached an estimated Rp13.27 trillion, while the material losses were reportedly around Rp2.02 trillion, the agency revealed in October 2018.
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EDITED BY INE
Translator: Karel AP, Rahmad Nasution
Editor: Fardah Assegaf
Copyright © ANTARA 2020
