Residents of Togean Sub-district were seen fleeing. Residents in the coastal area have moved to higher ground.
Jakarta (ANTARA) - Tens of people fled to higher ground over fears of a tsunami following a powerful earthquake that rattled Tojo Una-Una District, Central Sulawesi Province, on Monday night.

"Residents of Togean Sub-district were seen fleeing. Residents in the coastal area have moved to higher ground," acting chief of the Disaster Information Data and Communication Center at the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB) Abdul Muhari noted in a written statement released on Monday.

By Monday night, the BNPB had yet to receive a report of material damage.

The Tojo Una-Una District Disaster Mitigation Office (BPBD) has urged local people to stay calm and not panic following the powerful earthquake, Muhari remarked.

The BPBD has also called on the local residents to report any material damage, injuries, or fatalities, Muhari stated.

The BNPB also received reports of the latest situation in several districts, including Morowali Utara, Pohuwato, Banggai, and Poso, following the earthquake.

The BPBD in Morowali Utara District reported that the earthquake was strongly felt by several local residents. Meanwhile, the condition in Banggai District had returned to normal without any reports of material damage.

The earthquake was widely felt by the residents of Poso District. The tremors compelled COVID-19 patients, receiving treatment at the third floor of Poso Regional General Hospital (RSUD), to stay outdoors.

The earthquake was also strongly felt in the sub-districts of Bintauna, Kaidipang, Pinogaluman, Bol Itang Baat, and Bol Itang Timur in Bolaang Mongondow Utara District, Muhari stated.

The powerful earthquake, measuring 6.5 on the Richter scale, rocked Minahasa Peninsula, Tojo Una-Una District, Central Sulawesi, on Monday night, though no tsunami warning was issued, the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) reported.

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The epicenter of the earthquake, which struck at 7:02 p.m. WIB (West Indonesia Time), was located at sea, some 59 kilometers northeast of Tojo Una-Una, at a depth of 10 kilometers, according to the agency.

A 5.9-magnitude earthquake also struck the district earlier in the day.

The BMKG reported that the earthquake, which hit at 10:52 a.m. West Indonesia Time (WIB), was centered 55 kilometers northeast of Tojo Una-Una District, at a depth of 10 kilometers.

“It was a shallow earthquake caused by deformation due to local fault. The result of source mechanism analysis shows the earthquake had a normal fault mechanism,” Bambang Setiyo Prayitno, head of the BMKG Earthquake and Tsunami Center, noted in a statement released on Monday.

Central Sulawesi had borne the brunt of a 7.4-magnitude earthquake on September 28, 2018.

The strong earthquake followed by a tsunami and soil liquefaction in Palu, the capital of Central Sulawesi Province, had claimed 2,102 lives, injured 4,612, and rendered 680 others missing.

A total of 68,451 homes had incurred serious damage, while 78,994 people were displaced by the quake.

Related news: Death toll in West Sulawesi's earthquake has climbed to 56: BNPB



Translator: Devi Nindy SR, Suharto
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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