Strong quake hits Indonesia's Flores island

The quake measuring 6.1 on the Richter scale has struck Flores but no damage or casualties were reported.

A strong earthquake measuring 6.1 on the Richter scale has struck Indonesia's eastern island of Flores but no damage or casualties were reported, the meteorology office said on Monday.

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The quake struck at 7:58 pm (1158 GMT) on Sunday with its epicentre 251 kilometres beneath the Flores Sea, some 93 kilometres northwest of the town of Larantuka on Flores, the Jakarta-based office said.

Police in Larantuka said they had received no reports of damage or deaths.

The US Geological Survey recorded the tremor, which occurred about 1,770 kilometres east of the capital Jakarta, at 6.2 on the Richter scale.

Indonesia sits on the so-called Pacific Rim of Fire, where the meeting of continental plates causes high volcanic and seismic activity.