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JAKARTA, Dec 13 (Reuters) - A strong undersea earthquake shook northeastern Indonesia late on Tuesday but there was no danger of a tsunami because of its depth, an official at the country's meteorology agency said.

The quake, of magnitude 6.5, struck at 10:48 pm (1548 GMT) on Tuesday, 252 km (157 miles) north east of the city of Manado on the island of Sulawesi at a depth of 237 km, Benny, an official at Indonesia's meteorology and geophysical centre, said by telephone on Wednesday.

The U.S. Geological Survey said on its Web site the quake measured 6.2.

The Indonesian official said the tremor could be felt in the town of Ternate in the north Mollucas area but there were no immediate reports of damage or casualties.

Earthquakes are frequent in Indonesia, which straddles a seismically active part of the so-called "Ring of Fire" in the Pacific.

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