JAKARTA: A magnitude 6.1 earthquake struck off Indonesia’s Sumatra island on Tuesday, March 3, shaking parts of Aceh province and sending residents in several communities briefly outdoors, according to official monitoring reports. The U.S. Geological Survey recorded the quake at 11:56 a.m. local time (04:56 UTC) in the Indian Ocean near Simeulue Regency, off Sumatra’s northwestern coast. There was no tsunami warning, and early assessments reported no confirmed casualties or major damage.
Indonesia’s Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency, known as BMKG, issued a separate estimate that put the quake’s magnitude at 6.4 and described it as shallow, with a depth of about 13 kilometers. BMKG’s bulletin located the epicenter roughly 61 kilometers southeast of Sinabang, the main town on Simeulue Island, while the USGS placed the epicenter about 65 kilometers southeast of Sinabang and estimated the depth at about 26 kilometers. Both agencies described the event as offshore.
Shaking was felt across multiple districts in Aceh and parts of North Sumatra, with BMKG intensity readings indicating the strongest felt reports at level IV on the Modified Mercalli Intensity scale in areas including Simeulue and nearby districts. Lighter shaking was also reported in places such as Medan and parts of Nias, according to official summaries. Local officials and monitoring updates said the jolt was widely felt but short, prompting precautionary evacuations to open areas in some neighborhoods.
Seismic readings
Simeulue’s disaster management agency said Tuesday afternoon that it had not received reports of structural damage while it awaited updates from subdistrict officials and continued checks in affected areas. BMKG also recorded at least one aftershock, including a magnitude 3.2 tremor later the same day, and reiterated that the main quake did not have tsunami potential. Authorities continued collecting field information from island communities and coastal areas closest to the offshore epicenter.
A national health-sector monitoring update released Wednesday morning, March 4, listed no reported deaths or injuries linked to the Simeulue earthquake at the time of publication and indicated no reports of damaged hospitals or clinics. The update noted that local health officials were conducting rapid assessments and keeping primary health centers on standby to respond if needed. Disaster and health authorities said they were maintaining situational monitoring while routine services continued.
Regional context
Aceh sits near one of the most seismically active zones in the world, where tectonic plates converge along the Sunda subduction system off western Indonesia. Earthquakes are common across the Indonesian archipelago, which spans the Pacific “Ring of Fire,” a belt of frequent seismic and volcanic activity. Simeulue and surrounding waters have experienced strong offshore earthquakes in the past, including events associated with the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami.
BMKG urged residents to remain calm, follow official updates, and avoid unverified information, while local agencies continued compiling reports from communities that felt the strongest shaking. Officials said the quake’s offshore location reduced the likelihood of widespread damage on land, but assessments were continuing across Simeulue and nearby areas. As of the latest official updates available Wednesday, authorities had not reported confirmed casualties or significant damage from the March 3 earthquake – By Content Syndication Services.