Series of Earthquakes Rattles Indonesia

“[The earthquake] made me feel like I would fall head first,” said Palupi in Bogor, West Java.

“Unlike most earthquakes which would shake the ground, this earthquake feels like it is going up and down,” said Jakarta resident Shinta.

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For Depok resident Kristianto Purnomo, the earthquake was more tangible.

“I felt the ground move. I even saw the chairs and television in my living room move.” 

The BMKG said the earthquake occurred offshore.

“The [quake] was detected 18 kilometers northwest of Rangkasbitung,” said BMKG official Rahmat Triyono. "It was caused by friction in the Indo-Australian plates under the Eurasian plates.”

The biggest strike

BMKG noted that the biggest earthquake to hit Indonesia over the past 24 hours occurred near the Central Java town of Jepara.

“The 6.1 magnitude earthquake struck 53 kilometers off [Jepara],” said BMKG Earthquake and Tsunami Mitigation head Daryono.