According to the United States Geological Survey (USGS), a massive 6.6 magnitude earthquake struck 173 km north-northwest of the island of Ternate at a depth of 60.5 km on Sunday. Earlier USGS data suggested that the quake measured 7.0 in magnitude.
The disaster comes just a day after a 5.4 earthquake with its epicentre located 180 km south of Ternate.
There are no reports on the possibility of a new tsunami.
Indonesia, located in a seismically active zone known as the Ring of Fire, regularly suffers from powerful earthquakes.