A POWERFUL 7.3 magnitude quake struck off the coast of Indonesia’s Maluku province in the early hours of today, the United States Geological Survey said in a statement.

There were no immediate reports of tsunami warnings, casualties or damage. 

The offshore quake took place around 3.25am local time (1825 GMT Wednesday) and hit at a depth of 166km, about 120km northeast of the town of Lospalos.

Indonesia experiences frequent quakes due to its position on the Pacific “Ring of Fire”, an arc of intense seismic activity where tectonic plates collide, which stretches from Japan through Southeast Asia and across the Pacific basin. – AFP, December 30, 2021.