M5.1 Aftershock Strikes Near Ruteng in Flores Earthquake Sequence

A magnitude 5.1 earthquake struck offshore northeast of Ruteng in Manggarai, East Nusa Tenggara, on Tuesday, as the long aftershock sequence from August's major Flores earthquake continued.

The quake occurred at 11:40 a.m. local time at a depth of 10 kilometers. Its epicenter lay about 57 kilometers offshore from Ruteng, according to Indonesia's Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysical Agency, known as BMKG.

BMKG Director of Earthquake and Tsunami Wijayanto said the earthquake posed no tsunami threat. “Modeling results show that this earthquake has no tsunami potential,” he said in a written statement issued shortly after the quake.

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Modeling results show that this earthquake has no tsunami potential.

BMKG attributed the shallow earthquake to activity along the Flores Back-Arc Thrust, a fault system north of Flores Island. The agency classified its mechanism as a thrust fault, in which one section of Earth's crust moves upward relative to another. The agency's estimated shaking map recorded intensity IV on the Modified Mercalli Intensity scale in Lamba Leda in East Manggarai, as well as Reok and West Reok in Manggarai. At that level, many people indoors can feel the shaking and some objects may rattle.

BMKG classified the event as part of the aftershock sequence following the magnitude 7.7 earthquake that struck Flores on Aug. 15. By Sept. 8, the agency had recorded 13,591 aftershocks, with the strongest measuring magnitude 6.2. BMKG said it would continue monitoring the region and urged residents to remain calm, reject unverified information, and stay away from buildings with earthquake cracks or other damage.

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Avoid buildings that have cracks or have been damaged by earthquake shaking.