JAKARTA, Indonesia
(AP) — A strong earthquake with a magnitude of 6.4 shook
the eastern Indonesian city of Ambon on Tuesday, causing residents
to flee their homes in panic, seismologists said.
There were
no immediate reports of casualties or serious damage, the Indonesian
Meteorology and Geophysics Agency said.
It said the
tremor occurred five minutes after midnight with the epicenter
beneath the Banda Sea about 40 miles southwest of Ambon.
A half hour
later, a 5.6 magnitude quake struck beneath the Seram Sea about
55 miles northwest of Ambon.
Indonesia,
which sits on major fault lines, is prone to frequent seismic
upheavals. A magnitude 6 earthquake can cause severe damage if
centered near an urban area.
Ambon is in
the Maluku islands, also known as the Moluccas, where thousands
of people have been killed in Muslim-Christian fighting during
the past 20 months.
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