A powerful magnitude 7.4 earthquake has struck the northern Molucca Sea off the coast of Ternate, a city in Indonesia’s North Maluku province, prompting authorities to issue a regional tsunami alert. The tremor has killed at least one person and caused damage to buildings and infrastructure, while smaller tsunami waves have been recorded along parts of the coastline.
Epicentre and tremor details
The quake’s epicentre was roughly 120–127 km from Ternate, at a shallow depth of around 10–35 km, according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS). It struck in the early hours of Thursday local time, with the US‑based tsunami warning system flagging a risk of hazardous waves along coastlines within about 1,000 km of the epicentre, covering parts of Indonesia, the Philippines, and Malaysia.
Tsunami alerts and impacts
Indonesian disaster agencies and the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center issued alerts advising coastal communities to move to higher ground, warning that tsunami waves of about 0.3–1 metre above tide level could affect certain areas. Videos circulating on social media show seawater pouring into coastal streets and homes in low‑lying zones, although there have been no reports so far of a major, destructive tsunami on the scale seen in past regional events. Rescue teams are on the ground assessing damage and coordinating evacuations where needed as aftershocks continue to rattle the region.
