Earthquakes hit Indonesia off Ternate, triggering tsunami warning that is now lifted

A powerful earthquake measuring magnitude 7.4 struck off the coast of Ternate on Thursday, killing at least one person and briefly triggering a tsunami warning that has since been lifted.

According to the United States Geological Survey, the quake hit at a depth of 35 kilometres. It was initially recorded at magnitude 7.8 before being revised.

The epicentre was located about 120 kilometres from Ternate in North Maluku province.

Authorities in affected areas, including Ternate and Tidore, urged residents to prepare for possible evacuation as the tremor was felt strongly.

One person was killed in Manado after a building collapsed, a search and rescue official told AFP.

“The quake was felt strongly and around Manado … one person died and one person had a leg injury,” George Leo Mercy Randang told AFP by telephone.

The victim was “buried under the rubble” of a collapsed building, he said.

The Hawaii-based Pacific Tsunami Warning Center initially warned that hazardous waves could impact coastal areas within 1,000 kilometres.

Waves of up to 75 centimetres were recorded in parts of Sulawesi, according to Indonesia’s BMKG agency.

The PTWC later said the tsunami threat “has now passed'.