"The first aftershock of magnitude 2.9 was recorded at 11:23 p.m. local time on Sunday, and the second one, measuring 2.4 in magnitude, occurred at 3:47 a.m. on Monday," head of the agency's Earthquake and Tsunami Center, Daryono, said.
The aftershocks did not cause any damage, he added.
He said that the 4.8-magnitude quake that struck Sumedang at 8:34 p.m. on Sunday evening was a "shallow crustal earthquake," which was triggered by the movement of an active fault in the area.
Prior to the earthquake, local residents had felt the tremors caused by magnitude 4.1 and 3.4 quakes at 2:35 p.m. and 3:38 p.m., respectively, on Sunday, he said.
The epicenters of the three earthquakes in Sumedang were close to the northeastern tip of the Cileunyi-Tanjungsari fault line. Thus, the Sumedang earthquake could be associated with the Cileunyi-Tanjungsari fault, he added.
Earlier, an earthquake of magnitude 4.5 had struck Sumedang district on December 19, 1972. The shallow quake had damaged several houses and triggered a landslide in the Cibunar neighborhood area, Daryono said.
The Sumedang quake had caused damage to buildings because its epicenter was located at a depth of five kilometers, he added.
Earthquakes are a regular occurrence in several 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.
In the past, Aceh, the country's westernmost province, experienced the deadliest earthquake ever on record on December 26, 2004. The quake had a magnitude of 9.3 and was followed by a tsunami.
The catastrophe, which also affected certain coastal areas in countries such as Thailand, Sri Lanka, and India, reportedly killed at least 230 thousand people in Aceh.
Then, on September 28, 2018, a 7.4-magnitude earthquake hit several parts of Central Sulawesi province.
The strong earthquake, which was followed by a tsunami and soil liquefaction in Palu, the capital of Central Sulawesi province, claimed 2,102 lives and left 4,612 people injured and 680 others missing. Serious damage was recorded in 68,451 homes, resulting in the displacement of 78,994 people.
The authorities estimated that the material losses inflicted by the twin deadly disasters would amount to Rp15.29 trillion, or approximately US$993.5 million at the current exchange rate.
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Translator: Anita PD, Rahmad Nasution
Editor: Anton Santoso
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