A 7.4-magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of eastern Indonesia on Thursday (April 2, 2026), killing at least one person, causing waves of up to 75 centimeters (2.5 feet) and triggering a tsunami warning that was later lifted.
The US Geological Survey (USGS) said the earthquake struck at a shallow depth of 35 kilometers in the Molucca Sea between the Sulawesi and Maluku archipelagos early in the morning.
One person was killed when a building collapsed in the city of Manado in North Sulawesi province, a local search and rescue official said. AFP.
“The earthquake was felt very strongly near Manado… one person died and one person suffered a leg injury,” George Leo Mercy Randang said. AFP by phone.
He said that the victim was “buried under the rubble” of the collapsed building.
The Hawaii-based Pacific Tsunami Warning Center (PTWC) initially said dangerous tsunami waves were possible within 1,000 kilometers (621 miles) of the tip off the coasts of Indonesia, the Philippines and Malaysia.
Within half an hour of the earthquake, waves of up to 75 centimeters were recorded in the northern part of Minahasa and 20 centimeters in Bitung, north of the island of Sulawesi, according to Indonesia’s geological agency BMKG.
Thirty-inch waves were also recorded in the province of North Maluku.
The PTWC lifted its warning just two hours after the quake, saying the tsunami threat had “passed.”
A resident of Ternate, Budi Nurgianto, 42 years old, said he was in his house when the earthquake hit, causing people outside to panic.
He said: “The shock was felt very strongly.
“When I went outside, there were many people outside. They were scared. The shock was felt (for a long time) for more than a minute.
“I even saw some people coming out of their house without taking a bath.”
People stand outside a hospital building after it was evacuated following an earthquake in Manado, North Sulawesi, Indonesia on Thursday (April 2, 2026). | Credit Credit: Reuters
Aftershocks
The head of BMKG, Teuku Faisal Fathani, told reporters in the capital Jakarta that there were 11 earthquakes, the largest with a magnitude of 5.5.
An AFP a journalist from Manado in Sulawesi, about 300 kilometers west of Ternate by sea, said the tremor woke him and others in the town of about 450,000 people.
“I immediately got up and left my house. People (were) immediately rushing outside. There is a school and the students ran outside,” he said.
The shaking continued “for a long time” but he did not see “major damage”, he added.
The PTWC had initially warned that tsunami waves of up to one meter were possible in parts of Indonesia, with smaller waves possible for the Philippines, Malaysia, Japan, Taiwan, Guam and Palau.
“Government agencies in charge of threatened coastal areas should take action to inform and instruct any coastal population at risk,” the organization said.
Japan’s Meteorological Agency said it expects “small changes” in the ocean along the Pacific coast from northern Hokkaido to southern Okinawa, but has not yet issued any warnings.
Earthquake centers in the Philippines and Malaysia have also not issued tsunami warnings.
Indonesia and neighboring countries experience frequent earthquakes due to their location in the Pacific “Ring of Fire” a powerful earthquake zone where tectonic plates collide from Japan to Southeast Asia and across the Pacific Ocean.
In 2004, there was a 9.1 magnitude earthquake in Aceh province, which caused a tsunami and killed more than 170,000 people in Indonesia.
It has been published – April 02, 2026 07:33 am IST
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