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Strong quake jolts Indonesia's Aceh province

Other News Materials 20 February 2008 13:09 (UTC +04:00)

( dpa ) - A magnitude-6.6 earthquake struck Indonesia's Aceh province Wednesday, but no injuries or damage were immediately reported, an official said.

The quake struck the tsunami-devastated province at 3:08 pm (0808 GMT) and was centred 42 kilometres south-west of Sinabang, the capital of Simeulue island off Aceh's west coast, said Budi Waluyo, an official at the National Meteorology and Geophysics Agency.

Budi Waluyo, said the quake occurred about 30 kilometres beneath the ground. The US Geological Survey measured the quake at 7.6 on the Richter scale.

"The quake has no tsunami potential because it's happening under the ground, not the sea," he said.

Aceh - which lies on the northern tip of Sumatra Island, 1,800 kilometres north-west of Jakarta - was devastated by the quake- triggered Indian Ocean tsunami of December 26, 2004. The wave killed 177,000 people in Aceh alone and destroyed entire towns.

Indonesia, the world's largest archipelago nation, sits atop the Pacific Ocean's Ring of Fire, where the meeting of continental plates causes high volcanic and seismic activity.

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