Quake off Andaman islands; no injuries

A moderate earthquake of magnitude 5.9 struck in the ocean near the Andaman islands early on Saturday, but no casualties were reported, the US Geological Survey (USGS) and local officials said. No tsunami warning was issued. But residents fled their homes in panic, with the tremors shaking buildings and rattling furniture on the island of Diglipur, 340km north of capital Port Blair.

"We were sleeping, but felt the quake quite strongly and we ran out of of our home," said resident Ashok Yadav. "But initially we were not able to move out of our bed because it was shaking very badly."

Government officials said buildings on the island had developed cracks.

"There are also cracks on Diglipur roads. In fact in every private house and shop there is some loss of property," Sudeep Saha, an official, told Reuters.

Saturday's quake had its epicentre 180 km north by northeast of Port Blair, at a depth of 27.2km, according to the USGS.

Quakes are frequent in the Andamans, a seismic region. A strong 7.5 magnitude earthquake hit the region last Sunday, sparking off tsumani warnings which were later withdrawn.

The islands were badly hit by the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, triggered by a 9.15 quake off the coast of Sumatra in Indonesia.