A strong earthquake shakes Indonesia's Java Island but no reports of casualties

A powerful and shallow undersea earthquake rattled the eastern side of Indonesia's main island of Java on Friday, causing damage but fortunately no immediate reports of casualties.

According to the U.S. Geological Survey, the earthquake measured 6.4 on the Richter scale and struck at a depth of 8.5 kilometers (5.2 miles) north of Paciran in East Java province.

Earlier on Friday, two smaller quakes had also hit the same area and were felt in Surabaya, the closest city. Buildings in Jakarta, the capital, experienced swaying for several seconds after the third earthquake.

Authorities reported that a house and a village town hall collapsed in Tuban district.

The Indonesian Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysical Agency assured that there was no threat of a tsunami but cautioned about potential aftershocks.

Indonesia, with a population of 270 million people, is situated in a seismically active region due to its location on major geological faults known as the Pacific "Ring of Fire."

Last year, a magnitude 5.6 earthquake in West Java's Cianjur city claimed about 600 lives, marking the deadliest earthquake in Indonesia since the 2018 quake and tsunami in Sulawesi that killed over 4,300 people.

In 2004, an immensely powerful Indian Ocean earthquake triggered a tsunami that resulted in the loss of more than 230,000 lives across twelve countries.