MANADO RESIDENTS PANIC STRICKEN BY 7.6-MAGNITUDE EARTHQUAKE

Manado, North Sulawesi, Sept. 11 (ANTARA) - An earthquake measuring 7.6 on the Richter scale caused panic-stricken residents of Manado to rush out of their homes on Thursday morning.
A number of people living in coastal areas fled to higher ground in fear of possible tsunami following a tsunami early warning issued by the Manado meteorological and geophysics office (BMG). However, BMG lifted the warning an hour later as there was no indication of tsunami.
"The most important thing is to save myself and my family, because the earthquake was very strong," Pieter, a Manado inhabitant, who fled their home, said.
There was no report of casualty or damage in the temblor.
The earthquake's epicenter was located at 1.88 degrees northern latitude and 127.27 degrees eastern longitude, around 122 km northwest of Ternate, North Maluku Province, at a depth of 10 km below sea level.
Residents of Ternate could feel the temblor at the fourth level of MMI (Modified Mercalli Intensity), while in Menado was III-MMI.
Indonesia is located in a zone known as the Pacific "ring of fire" which is prone to earthquakes and volcanic activity.