Australia jolted by Indonesian earthquake

Canberra, Dec 30 Parts of northern Australia was jolted by a 7.4-magnitude earthquake that hit off the coast of Indonesia on Thursday, with no immediate reports of damage or injuries.

The tremor was felt at about 3.55 a.m. in Darwin, capital of Northern Territory, Xinhua news agency quoted the local media reports as saying.

There was no tsunami threat, said the Australian Bureau of Meteorology on Twitter.

Many local residents were waken up by the shake.

"I woke up at about 4 a.m. at the strong quake, which then lasted for another 20 seconds," Ben, a Darwin resident, told Xinhua.

"I could hear dogs barking and my neighbours getting up as well."

Some people took to social media to talk about the quake.

"The ground just shook for a full minute in Darwin," Zizi Averill tweeted. "Nothing like a possible 4am earthquake to remind you 2021 isn't done with us yet."

"It was a long earthquake and quite strong, too, but for some reason, not many people in our building fled to the lobby," said Jacinth Tome.

The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) said no damage or injuries were reported yet.

The ABC quoted Geoscience Australia senior seismologist Hadi Ghasemi as saying that their modelling and first reports all suggested a "moderate to light level of ground shaking".

"We don't expect any damage to well-built structures," said Ghasemi.