Magnitude 5.9 quake rattles Java, Indonesia

Indonesia's most-populated island on Monday was struck by a 5.9-magnitude earthquake but there were no immediate reports of damage or casualties, officials said.

The US Geological Survey said that after 6:00 pm (1100 GMT) at a depth of 67 kilometers that the quake struck 96 kilometers (59 miles) southwest of the city of Sukabumi in western Java. Tall buildings shake as tremor was felt 200 kilometers away in Jakarta.

No tsunami warning was issued Nugroho said although the quake struck around 50 kilometers offshore, and Sukabumi had "gone back to normal."

"I was praying at the time and suddenly it struck, so my husband and I ran outside the house into the yard. Luckily, I can't see any damage to our home," 27-year-old Hefei, who like many Indonesians goes by one name, said AFP.

A 6.1-magnitude quake with a depth of 24 kilometres was measured earlier by the Indonesian Meteorological and Geophysics Agency.

Indonesia is located on the Pacific "Ring of Fire" where there is collision of continental plates, causing seismic and volcanic activity most of the time. -GIAN — ARA