Moderate quake jolts Indonesia's Papua islan

Jakarta, Mar 3: A moderate 5.3-magnitude earthquake struck Indonesia's Papua island today, damaging some houses and a TV tower but caused no serious damage or deaths, a meteorological official said.

The quake struck 67 km southeast of Manokwari, the capital of West Irian Jaya province, at a depth of 33 km, Setiyono, an analyst at the meteorology and geophysics agency, said.

Indonesia lies in the so called ''Pacific Ring of Fire'' where seismic activity is frequent because of the shifting of tectonic plates.

Reuters