World

Magnitude 6.4 quake strikes off East Timor

By AAP Newswire

May 27, 2022

Screens monitoring earthquakes and tsunamis in Asia (file photo). — Seismologists say the quake was at a depth of 10 km and about 29 km off the East Timor coast. -EPA

An earthquake of magnitude 6.4 has struck off the coast of East Timor, prompting some people in the capital Dili to flee buildings.

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The European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre says the quake was at a depth of 10 km and struck about 29 km east-southeast of Lospalos.

There were no immediate reports of damage or casualties, but witnesses said the quake was felt strongly. A video shared on social media showed people getting out of a shopping mall in Dili by stairs.

"It's quite big," Francez Suni, director of information of East Timor's GMN TV told Reuters in text message.

"Our staff ran out of the building because it was shaking."

The Indonesian Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) said the quake did not trigger a tsunami threat warning.

The earthquake was felt in Darwin, more than 700 km away, according to Australian media reports and residents' posts on social media.

East Timor and neighbouring Indonesia straddle the so-called "Pacific Ring of Fire", a seismically active zone, where different plates on the earth's crust meet and create a large number of earthquakes and volcanoes.

The United States Geological Survey said the quake magnitude was 6.1 and 50 km deep.Â