The first quake which was recorded at magnitude 5.5 rattled Jayapura's area at 02:09 a.m. local time while the aftershock, recorded at magnitude 3.6, jolted the district at about 06:18 a.m. local time.
The two quakes did not trigger tsunami, and there were no immediate reports of casualties or damages in the aftermath of the earthquakes, according to the Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG).
The first earthquake's epicenter was located about 60 kilometers away from the northwest of Jayapura at a depth of 10 km while the aftershock's epicenter was located around 66 km away from the district at a depth of 26 km.
The tremors could be felt by those in Jayapura and Yalimo Districts, the agency reported.
Earthquakes regularly strike 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.
Like many other provinces in the archipelago, Papua and West Papua are also prone to earthquakes. Strong earthquakes have repeatedly jolted certain parts of Papua over the past decade.
On January 13, 2021, for instance, a 5.7-magnitude earthquake jolted southeast of Waropen District in Papua though it did not have the potential to generate a tsunami.
On January 18, 2020, a 6.0-magnitude tectonic earthquake rattled the districts of Jayapura and Sarmi in this eastern Indonesian province.
One of the deadly earthquakes jolting Papua occurred in Serui of Yapen Island and other coastal areas in which several local residents lost their lives and numerous houses were damaged.
According to the BMKG-Sorong office, some 1,040 earthquakes jolted various parts of West Papua in 2020, with 27 quakes jolting the province in the month of September alone.
The average magnitudes of the earthquakes that intensively rattled West Papua in September, 2020 was recorded at three and four, the agency's head, Rully Hermawan, said recently.
Sorong district is vulnerable to earthquakes as it lies on the Circum-Pacific Belt, also known as the Ring of Fire. Its vulnerability is also a result of the "Sorong fault", which runs through the fault zone in Sulawesi Island, which triggered the Palu and Majene earthquakes.
Sorong district has repeatedly been rocked by strong earthquakes over the past decades. In 2009, for instance, a 7.9-magnitude earthquake jolted Manokwari District and triggered a tsunami in Ransiki town.
On September 26, 2015, a 6.0-magnitude earthquake jolted Sorong district's Tanjung Kasuari, Hermawan said.
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Translator: Rahmad Nasution
Editor: Fardah Assegaf
Copyright © ANTARA 2021
