Strong earthquake hits Indonesia's Papua

Jakarta: A strong earthquake hit Indonesia’s eastern province of Papua today, causing panic among residents, but there were no immediate reports of damage or casualties. The earthquake, with a preliminary magnitude of 6.2, struck at 8.42 am local time, said Indonesia’s Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency. [caption id=“attachment_132076” align=“alignleft” width=“380” caption=“The earthquake, with a preliminary magnitude of 6.2, struck at 8.42 am local time. AFP”]  [/caption] The agency said the quake was centered about 34 kilometers southwest of the mountainous town of Oksibil at a depth of 57 kilometers. It shocked residents in Oksibil, which is located south of Papua’s provincial capital, Jayapura. “We all ran out from homes,” said a housewife who identified herself only as Desy. “This is the strongest quake I ever felt.” Indonesia is prone to seismic upheaval due to its location on the Pacific “Ring of Fire,” an arc of volcanoes and fault lines encircling the Pacific Basin. A giant quake off the country on 26 December 2004 triggered a tsunami in the Indian Ocean that killed 230,000 people, half of them in Indonesia’s westernmost province of Aceh. AP