6.2 Earthquake felt off Indonesia, another one hits Puerto Rico
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A strong earthquake hit off western Indonesian coast in the Indian Ocean on Tuesday, but there were no immediate reports of damage.
According to AP the U.S. Geological Survey reported the magnitude 6.2 quake was centered in the sea at a depth of 20 kilometers (12 miles) about 16.7 kilometers (10 miles) southwest of Sinabang town of Aceh province.
Rahmat Triyono, who heads the earthquake and tsunami center at Indonesia’s Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency, said there was no risk of a tsunami from the quake.
National Disaster Mitigation Agency spokesman Agus Wibowo said the quake caused cracks or broken windows in several buildings in Sinabang, but no injuries were reported.
Residents in parts of Aceh and neighboring North Sumatra province felt a moderate tremor for a few seconds, while people in the Aceh provincial capital of Banda Aceh did not feel the quake, Wibowo said.
Indonesia, home to more than 260 million people, is prone to earthquakes and volcanic eruptions due to its location along the Pacific “Ring of Fire.”
On the same day a magnitude an earthquake and a number of aftershock struck Puerto Rico.
The 6.4-magnitude earthquake rumbled across Puerto Rico on Tuesday, knocking out power to virtually the entire island of more than 3 million people.
An aftershock a short time later registered 6.0-magnitude. The temblors came one day after the island was shaken by a 5.8 magnitude quake that crumbled homes and triggered states of emergency across the island. Tuesday’s quake was the largest in a series of quakes that have struck the U.S. territory in recent days and caused heavy damage in some areas.
Puerto Rican Gov. Wanda Vázquez Garced ordered government employees, except for first responders, to stay home. She urged residents to follow the island’s emergency management social media sites for updated information.
“I hope everybody is fine,” she said on Twitter. “We urge you to remain calm and safe.”
A tsunami alert issued for Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands was quickly canceled. The Electric Power Authority, PREPA, reported some damage to substations but said it hoped to return power to much of the island during the day.
