Strong quake hits Papua, Indonesia; no tsunami alert

A strong earthquake measuring magnitude 6.9 struck off Irian Jaya in Indonesia on Thursday at a depth of 39.9 miles (64 km), the U.S. Geological Survey said.

Jakarta: A strong quake measuring 6.8 on the Richter scale jolted West Papua and eastern most parts of Indonesia on Thursday, but it did not have the potential to create a tsunami, the Meteorology and Geophysics Agency said here.

The quake struck at 22:53 p.m. (local time) with epicentre at 31 km northeast of Sorong town and with a depth at 10 km under the sea, an official of the agency told Xinhua over phone.

The USGS reported the quake was of 6.6 magnitude. 

Indonesia is prone to quakes as it sits on a vulnerable quake-endemic zone called "the Pacific Ring of Fire".