Strong earthquake jolts, unnerves Acehnese

Nani Farida, The Jakarta Post, Banda Aceh, Aceh

A powerful earthquake struck the war-torn province of Aceh on Friday, prompting panicked residents to flee their homes and other buildings.

There were no immediate reports of casualties after the quake, which measured 5.8 on the Richter scale. Nor were any structural damages reported.

Residents said the tremor, which struck at 8:24 a.m., was felt for around 60 seconds in the provincial capital, Banda Aceh.

The quake was centered 240 kilometers under the Banda Sea, or 10 kilometers southeast of Tapak Tuan town in South Aceh, said the head of Aceh's Meteorology and Geophysics Agency, Sahnan.

Residents of South Aceh did not feel the earthquake, although the tremor was felt in Simeulue Island, adjacent to South Aceh.

In 2002, a powerful earthquake hit Simeulue, leaving several people dead and some buildings damaged.

The Indonesian Military is in the fourth month of a major offensive aimed at crushing members of the rebel Free Aceh Movement that has violently been campaigning for an independent state.

Last month, a 5.3 magnitude quake damaged some 200 village homes and government buildings on Halmahera island, North Maluku.

Earthquakes occur frequently throughout Indonesia, the world's largest archipelago nation that is prone to seismic upheavals because of its location on the Pacific "Ring of Fire".