An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 6.2 struck northeast of Sulawesi, Indonesia, Thursday afternoon, a day after three major earthquakes struck the region, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. Residents in Indonesia and other Indian Ocean nations were put on notice about the possibility of tsunami waves. Most of those watches were later dropped, although a watch remained in effect for Indonesia.The 7.8-magnitude earthquake struck about 6:45 a.m. (1145 GMT), according to the USGS. The epicenter was about 185 km (115 miles) south-southeast of Padang and about 210 km northwest of Bengkulu.
About four hours later, the USGS reported that a 7.1-magnitude quake had rocked the region. Sandwiched in-between were half a dozen temblors measuring 5.0 and above.
According to Indonesia's Social Welfare Minister Aburizal Bakrie, a total of at least 60 earthquakes have rattled the country within a 24-hour period.
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