Undersea Earthquake Strikes Indonesia’s Poso
5.8 magnitude quake hits Poso, damages church, no tsunami.
A 5.8 magnitude undersea earthquake struck near Poso district in Central Sulawesi, Indonesia, on Sunday morning, injuring 29 people, two critically, and triggering at least 15 aftershocks. The U.S. Geological Survey reported the quake’s epicenter 15 kilometers north of Poso, a region along the volatile “Ring of Fire” in the Pacific Basin, known for frequent seismic activity.
Indonesia’s National Disaster Mitigation Agency confirmed that most injuries occurred during a Sunday morning church service, with the majority of victims now receiving treatment at a regional hospital. “Amateur videos show structural damage to the church, and our team is assessing the broader impact,” said agency spokesperson Abdul Muhari. The Poso Disaster Mitigation Agency is conducting rapid field evaluations to gauge the extent of destruction, though no tsunami warning was issued.
Indonesia, a sprawling archipelago of over 270 million people, is no stranger to natural disasters due to its position on the seismically active “Ring of Fire.” The country has faced devastating quakes in recent years, including a 2022 magnitude 5.6 earthquake in West Java’s Cianjur that killed over 600 people and a 2018 Sulawesi quake-tsunami that claimed more than 4,300 lives. The 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, triggered by a massive quake, remains one of the deadliest, killing over 230,000 across multiple countries, primarily in Indonesia’s Aceh province.
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As authorities continue to monitor aftershocks, the focus remains on ensuring the safety of residents and assessing damage in this quake-prone region.
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