Pacitan authorities monitor effects of Trenggalek earthquake

Pacitan, E Java (ANTARA) - The Pacitan Disaster Mitigation Agency continued to monitor the effects of 5.2-magnitude earthquake that rattled southern areas of Trenggalek District in East Java Province on Sunday.

"We have so far not received any report of serious damages and casualties following the quake but we continue to monitor the situation on the ground," the agency's acting head, Erwin Andriatmoko, said.

Despite the absence of serious damages and casualties, he had ordered his men to keep staying alert, and urged local residents to remain vigilant against aftershocks that frequently occur in their areas.

The quake's epicenter was located some 23 km away from south of Munjungan Sub-district in Trenggalek District or around 64 km away from Pacitan city center at a depth of 103 km, he said.

According to the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG), the tremors of the earthquake that jolted Trenggalek at 6:55 a.m. local time were not merely felt by residents near the epicenter.

The tremors could also be felt by those in other districts, including Blitar and Kediri, he added.

Earthquakes regularly rock various parts of Indonesia since the country lies on the Circum-Pacific Belt, also known as the Ring of Fire, where several tectonic plates meet and cause frequent volcanic and seismic activities.

Aceh had experienced the deadliest ever earthquake, followed by tsunami, on December 26, 2004.

The catastrophe that also affected certain coastal areas in countries, such as Thailand, Sri Lanka, and India, reportedly killed some 230 thousand people.

On September 28, 2018, Indonesia again experienced another deadly earthquake and tsunami in Central Sulawesi Province.

The 7.4-magnitude earthquake that was followed by a tsunami and soil liquefaction in Palu, the capital of Central Sulawesi Province, claimed 2,102 lives, injured 4,612, and rendered 680 others missing.

A total of 68,451 homes incurred serious damage, while 78,994 people were displaced.

The authorities and humanitarian workers decided to bury the large number of rotting corpses in mass graves.