Huge 7.7-magnitude earthquake strikes Indonesia quickly followed by second 6.2 shock as tsunami warning issued

A HUGE 7.7-magnitude earthquake has rocked Indonesia’s coast, with a tsunami warning issued as powerful tremors rippled through the region. Footage shared online shows buildings reduced to crumbling shells, with walls and roofs collapsing into heaps of concrete and twisted wreckage. The videos show terrified locals scrambling to safety as debris comes hurtling down. Its epicentre was 68km north-northwest of the city of Ende in East Nusa Tenggara province. Other clips capture structures violently buckling and giving way, leaving behind little more than piles of rubble. In one terrifying scene, a building can be seen violently shaking as furniture is thrown from balconies. READ MORE IN WORLD NEWS A bridge was also filmed swaying from side to side, as terrified locals watched the unstable structure shudder. The quake was initially measured at 6.9 magnitude before being dramatically upgraded to 7.7 by the EMSC, marking a far more powerful jolt than first feared. The seismic shock struck at a depth of 35km at 5.58am local time. A second 6.3-magnitude earthquake hit the same region just 15 minutes later at 6.13am local time, according to the EMSC. Most read in The Sun The agency has issued an early tsunami warning for East Nusa Tenggara, South Sulawesi, West Nusa Tenggara, and Southeast Sulawesi. Fears have mounted over the possibility of a tsunami after one local captured the moment the sea receded along the Indonesian coastline. Residents along affected coastlines were advised to move to higher ground as officials are closely monitoring coastal tide gauges for any changes. In April, a 7.4 magnitude earthquake struck in the Molucca Sea off Indonesia’s Ternate island killing at least one person. A 70-year-old woman in North Sulawesi died after being crushed by building debris. Another person broke their leg after jumping off a building, Indonesia’s national news agency Antara reported. The monster quake marks the 6th global earthquake of magnitude 7.0 or higher within the last two months. Just hours earlier, Mount Ibu erupted in a spectacular blast, unleashing an enormous ash plume that soared 5km into the sky above Halmahera. Indonesia is one of the world’s most earthquake-prone nations, with its 17,000-plus islands sitting along the volatile Pacific “Ring of Fire” – a vast horseshoe of active volcanoes and powerful fault lines responsible for frequent seismic activity.