5.2 Magnitude Earthquake Shakes Tambolaka No Tsunami Potential

Illustration (Photo: Antara)

JAKARTA - An earthquake with a magnitude of 5.2 rocked the Tambolaka area, West Sumba Regency, East Nusa Tenggara (NTT), Wednesday morning.

Reported by Antara, according to the official website of the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG), which was monitored in Jakarta, said the earthquake that occurred at 02.44 WIB did not have the potential for a tsunami.

The epicenter of the earthquake occurred at 9.30 South Latitude (LS) - 119.32 East Longitude (BT) at a depth of 28 kilometers or 18 kilometers Northeast of Tambolaka.

The earthquake was felt on the MMI III-IV Tambolaka and III Waikabubak scales.

The Modified Mercalli Intensity (MMI) III scale means that earthquake vibrations are felt inside the house and as if a truck was passing.

The MMI IV scale was felt by many people in the house, outside by a few people, the pottery was broken, the windows/doors creaked and the walls rattled.

Previously, an earthquake with a magnitude of 3.3 rocked the northeastern region of Alor Regency, East Nusa Tenggara (NTT), on Tuesday, August 3 at 20:40 WIB.

The epicenter of the earthquake which occurred at 8.11 degrees south latitude and 124.65 east longitude was in the sea at a depth of 16 kilometers,

Earthquakes often occur in Indonesia because the largest archipelagic country in the world is located on the Pacific Ring of Fire.

Several parts of Indonesia have been hit by a large earthquake. One of them is Aceh Province, which was hit by a powerful earthquake with a magnitude of 9.0 on December 26, 2004.

The 2004 earthquake centered in the Indian Ocean at a depth of about 10 km and occurred about 149 kilometers west of Meulaboh was followed by a tsunami wave as high as about 20 meters.

This cataclysmic disaster that killed more than 200 thousand people left not only sorrow for the people of Aceh but also for many citizens in countries such as Thailand, India, and Sri Lanka.