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Tsunami alert triggers Indonesian panic
Hundreds of Indonesians fled to higher ground on Monday morning when an earthquake struck south of Java, triggering a tsunami alert.
The tremor had been felt in Pangandaran and Cilacap districts in Java Photo: Bing Maps
12:56AM BST 04 Apr 2011
Indonesia's earthquake agency later lifted the warning after the 7.1 magnitude quake struck off Cilacap on the south coast of Java island.
Suharjono, the technical head of Indonesia's Meteorology and Geophysics Agency, who like many Indonesians uses only one name, said shaking from the tremor had been felt in Pangandaran and Cilacap districts in Java.
"This quake roused people from their sleep," he said. "We have not received any reports of damage or casualties so far."
The US Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre had said that there was no risk of a widespread destructive wave, but there was a "very small possibility of a local tsunami".
The earthquake epicentre was 150 miles from the remote Australian territory of Christmas Island, and seismologists said the tremor was felt there, but no tsunami warning alert was issued for Australia.
We had reports from there that they felt it," Geoscience Australia seismologist David Jepson said, adding that it was described as a "moderate type quake".
Geoscience Australia put the quake at 6.7 magnitude.
