Residents of East Flores in Indonesia rushed to headlands today (December 14) to see if they were about to be hit by a tsunami after a 7.3-magnitude quake rocked the area.

After about two hours, authorities lifted the tsunami warning.

The quake, which struck at 03:20 GMT, caused widespread panic but only minor damage.

One person was injured, according to authorities.

After the 7.5 M earthquake that rocked eastern Indonesia, residents of the coast of East Flores, East Nusa Tenggara (NTT) province, went to the hills to avoid the threat of a tsunami as well as monitor sea level.

Local resident, Dewi Leba, said those in the northern coastal area evacuated independently as they learned from the experience of the 1992 tsunami disaster.

"We in the northern coastal areas of North East Flores, Sikka Island, northern Sikka and Lembata Island were asked to stay away from the coast and river banks," Leba added.

The strength of the earthquake with a depth of 12 kilometers in the Flores Sea has prompted the authorities to issue a tsunami early warning.

Two hours after the earthquake, BMKG declared that the tsunami early warning in the East Nusa Tenggara area had officially ended.

The 7.5 M earthquake in the Flores Sea occurred on Tuesday, December 14 at around 10.20 a.m.

BMKG recorded a sea level rise of 7 centimeters at Tide Gauge Reo and Marapokot Stations, East Nusa Tenggara.