Jakarta, June 16: A strong earthquake shook parts of Indonesia's Central Sulawesi province early today, but there were no immediate reports of injuries or property damage, the meteorology and geophysics agency said.

The 5.7 magnitude quake struck at 7 am, and lasted for about 15 seconds, the agency added. It was centered in the Sulawesi Sea, which is about 90 km southwest of the central Sulawesi port town of Tolitoli, the agency said. It was also felt in the nearby central Sulawesi towns of Palu and Donggala.

Residents of Tolitoli - located about 2,090 km northeast of the Indonesian capital of Jakarta - said they barely noticed the earthquake. Indonesia is prone to seismic upheavals because of its location on a line of volcanically active areas stretching from the western coast of the Americas across to Japan, Southeast Asia and the South Pacific.

Bureau Report