1st LD: powerful quake strikes off c. Indonesia, tsunami alert issued

A strong quake jolted North Sulawesi province of central Indonesia earlier Saturday and potential for tsunami, an official of the meteorology and geophysics agency said here.

The agency has revised the magnitude of the quake from 7.1 to 6.8 and a tsunami warning has been issued, Wahyu Kurniawan, official in charge at the agency said. The quake struck at 03: 23 a.m. Jakarta time with epicenter at 246 km northwest km Sangihe Island and the depth at 48 km under sea bed, he said.

"A tsunami warning has been in place as this quake is potential for tsunami," Mr. Kurniawan told Xinhua by phone.

Indonesia is prone to quake as it lies on a vulnerable quake-hit zone so called "the Pacific Ring of Fire." Endit