FIVE EARTHQUAKES JOLT INDONESIA SUNDAY MORNING

Jakarta, Oct. 25 (ANTARA) - Indonesia, which sits on the Pacific "Ring of Fire," the edge of a tectonic plate prone to seismic upheavals, was hit by five earthquakes on Sunday morning.

The National Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) reported here on Monday morning the earthquakes had hit Tual (Maluku Province), Waingapu (East Nusa Tenggara - NTT) Province), Bitung (North Sulawesi Province), and Siberutmentawai (West Sumatra).

A 5.3- magnitude earthquake shook 151 km southwest of Tual, Maluku, on Sunday, at 7.35 am Western Indonesian Standard Time (WIB). Its epicenter was located 6.69 degrees southern latitude, and 131.97 degrees eastern longitude, at a depth of 39 km below sea level.

On Saturday evening (Oct. 24), a powerful earthquake measuring 7.3 on the Richter scale rocked Saumlaki, Maluku Tenggara Barat (MTB) and Maluku Barat Daya (MBD) districts, Maluku Province. Reports on damages or casualties were not available yet.

At 3.54 am WIB, a 6.1-magnitude temblor shook 176 km southwest of Waingapu, East Nusa Tenggara (NTT) at a depth of 19 km under seabed, with its epicenter at 10.16 degrees southern latitude, and 118.75 degrees eastern longitude.

Few minutes later, at 4.04 am WIB, another earthquake measuring 5.5 on the Richter scale hit 174 southwest Waingapu, NTT, at a depth of 23 km, with its epicenter 10.1 degrees southern latitude, and 118.75 degrees eastern longitude.

On Sunday at 9.25 am WIB, a 5.2-magnitude quake rocked 106 kilometers northeast of Bitung (North Sulawesi), with its epicenter 2.34 degrees northern latitude and 125.55 degrees eastern longitude, at a depth of 10 km below sea level.

Earlier, at 8.50 am WIB, also on Sunday, an earthquake measuring 5.0 on the Richter scale jolted 69 km southeast of Siberut Mentawai, West Sumatra Province.

The quake's epicenter was located 1.58 degrees southern latitude and 99.43 degrees eastern longitude.