The quake generated small waves in several parts of the sprawling archipelago. A 9 cm wave reached the island of Jailolo but did not cause any major damage.
The Sitaro islands were strongly shaken by the tremors of the earthquake and people here were warned to stay away from beaches and riverbanks. Toni Supit, head of the islands' Sitaro district told the media, "People in coastal areas felt the strong quake, which lasted for quite some time, and they immediately went to the sea to see if the water was receding abnormally, which is a sign of an incoming tsunami."
The powerful earthquake under the Molucca Sea triggered brief tsunami warnings. People were panicked and fled their homes but the tsunami alert was lifted after a short while, as the threat passed away without any damage.
The first quake was shortly followed by another earthquake of magnitude 6.2 off the Indonesian island of Sulawesi. Indonesia lies on the Pacific "Ring of Fire" plate boundaries, making it one of the most seismically active countries in the world.
In 2004, a huge undersea earthquake had triggered a tsunami which claimed more than 170,000 people in Aceh province located on western Sumatra Island. Thousands of lives were lost in other countries with coasts on the Indian Ocean. This time, only places on the eastern side of the Indonesian mainland might be affected but Andaman Islands in India will not be touched. The 2004 tsunami was on the western side of Indonesia and thus, sent waves toward Indian Ocean but now the waves are likely to skirt away towards the Pacific Ocean.