NIAS ROCKED BY 5.9 MAGNITUDE EARTHQUAKE

Bandar Lampung, Nov 4 (ANTARA) - An earthquake measuring 5.9 on the Richter scale jolted Nias island in North Sumatra Province at 2:21 local time on Tuesday morning, meteorology and geophysics agency (BMG) reported.

According to the agency, the epicenter of the earthquake was located between 1.35 degrees northern latitude and 97.07 degrees eastern longitude at a depth of 24 kilometers under the sea level.

BMG reported that the epicenter was also located 59 kilometers northwest of Gunung Sitoli, Nias island, 130 kilometers southwest of Singkilbaru, Nanggroe Aceh Darusalam (NAD), 148 kilometers southeast of Sinabang (NAD), and 212 kilometers southeast of Tapaktuan in Aceh.

About 36 minutes later an aftershock measuring 4.2 on the Richter scale jolted Nias island again at 2:57 a.m. at a depth of 27 kilometers between 1.49 degrees northern latitude and 97.4 degrees eastern longitude, or 31 kilometers northwest of Gunung Sitoli.

But so far there was no immediate report of fatality and material damage in the disaster.

Indonesia, the world's largest archipelago, sits on the Pacific
"Ring of Fire," the edge of a tectonic plate prone to seismic
upheaval.