An earthquake measuring 5.3 on the Richter scale shook Bitung water area, North Sulawesi province on Saturday at 07:38 am local time, ANTARA reported. The quake's epicenter was located at 1.63 degrees northern latitude and 127.00 degrees eastern longitude at a depth of 32 km below sea level, a spokesman of the Meteorological and Geophysics Agency (BMG) local office, Mudji, said. The BMG reported that the epicenter of the earthquake which did not trigger tsunami, was located in the water area between Bitung and Ternate, or 103 km of Ternate, North Maluku province. However, the worst hit by the quake was Ternate, Mudji said. Bitung and Ternate water areas, which consist of tertiary rocks and faults, were considered prone to earthquakes.
