JAKARTA - One person was killed after a 7.3-magnitude earthquake hit off the remote Maluku islands in eastern Indonesia on Sunday (July 14), sending panicked residents running into the streets.

However, no tsunami warning was issued.

The quake struck about 165km south-south-west of the town of Ternate in North Maluku province at 6.28pm local time, at a depth of 10km, according to the US Geological Survey, Agence France-Presse reported.

"The earthquake was quite strong, sending residents to flee outside, they are panicking and many are now waiting on the roadside," local disaster mitigation official Mansur, who like many Indonesians goes by one name, told AFP.

Officials were assessing the situation, but there were no immediate reports of casualties, Mr Mansur said.

Mr Iksan Subur of the South Halmahera Disaster Management Agency also said there are no report of casualties and death so far.

"The situation in the city (of Labuha) has returned to normal," he told The Straits Times.

A number of residents living in coastal areas are still in higher and safer places, such as the office of the South Halmahera regent and mosques.

The province was also hit by a 6.9-magnitude tremor last week, but no extensive damage was reported.

Indonesia experiences frequent seismic and volcanic activity due to its position on the Pacific "Ring of Fire", where tectonic plates collide.

Last year, a 7.5-magnitude quake and a subsequent tsunami in Palu on Sulawesi island killed more than 2,200 people, with another thousand declared missing.

On Dec 26, 2004, a devastating 9.1-magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of Sumatra and triggered a tsunami that killed 220,000 throughout the region, including around 170,000 in Indonesia.