Earthquake in eastern Indonesia: 5.8 magnitude jolts houses, beach evacuation warnings

A 5.8-magnitude earthquake struck eastern Indonesia on Wednesday, causing cracks in some walls, and residents living along the coast in Maluku province have been asked to move to higher areas.

Indonesia's Meteorological, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency said there was no danger of a major tsunami, although the sea level rose by about 0.5 meters due to landslides in the water. Henry Farr, the head of the Maluku Disaster Management Agency, said coastal villagers in the Tehoru subdistrict panicked due to the quake and were asked to move to a higher place. He said some buildings had cracks in the walls and floors.

The epicenter of the earthquake was 10 km in the sea

The US Geological Survey said the quake's epicenter was 70 kilometers from the city of Amahai on Serum Island in Maluku province, at a depth of about 10 kilometers in the sea. Earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and tsunamis occur in Indonesia every day.