The Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) said the earthquake hit 52 kilometers off Banten province at a depth of 10 kilometers, but did not trigger a tsunami warning. The magnitude was initially reported at 6.7 but downgraded to 6.6.

There were no immediate reports of casualties and the BMKG warned people to stay indoors, after five aftershocks were recorded, the strongest reaching a magnitude of 5.7.

"From inside a house, it felt like a truck was passing through," BMKG chief Dwikorita Karnawati told a livestreamed news conference.

In Jakarta, tremors were felt strongly for more than a minute, said Reuters witnesses.

Indonesia straddles the so-called "Pacific Ring of Fire", a highly seismically active zone, where different plates on the earth’s crust meet and create a large number of earthquakes and volcanoes.

"I was very scared, suddenly there was a quake and it was so strong," said Ani, 38, a child minder.

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