Moderate quake strikes off Indonesia coast

A 5.5-magnitude quake was registered early on Saturday near the coast of Indonesia, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) said on its website. According to seismologists, the quake’s epicenter was located 210 kilometers (130 miles) to the northwest of Bengkulu on Sumatra Island at a depth of 5.5 kilometers (3.4 miles). The shallow quake struck at 02:24 a.m. local time (19:24 GMT on Friday), the USGS said. There were no immediate reports of injuries or damage, and no tsunami warning was issued by local authorities. Indonesia is notorious for its high volcanic and seismic activity, as it sits on the so-called Pacific "Ring of Fire", where tectonic plates meet. In 2004, an 9.1-magnitude earthquake struck the eastern coast of Sumatra, causing a tsunami that hit the coasts of Sri Lanka, India, Indonesia, Thailand, and Malaysia. It is still unclear exactly how many perished in that natural disaster, but the closest estimates are at 230,000 victims.