Powerful earthquake sparks panic on Indonesia's Java island

By Burak Dag

ANKARA (AA) – A strong tremor rocked Indonesia’s Java island on Saturday, sparking panic in a region where more than 320 people were killed in an earthquake last month.

A magnitude 5.7 tremor struck at a depth of 112 kilometers (69 miles), with its epicenter some 18 kilometers (11 miles) southeast of the town of Banjar in West Java, the United States Geological Survey (USGS) said in a brief statement.

Indonesia’s meteorological agency BMKG initially reported a magnitude of 6.4, before revising it to 6.1.

There were no reports of major damage or casualties.

BMKG officials said there was no threat of a tsunami, according to local media.

Last month’s earthquake devastated the town of Cianjur in West Java, claiming hundreds of lives, displacing more than 73,000 people, and damaging over 56,000 homes and buildings.