Why does Kalimantan Island tend to be safe and earthquakes are rare ?

Why is Kalimantan safe and rare compared to Java and other regions in Indonesia?

In school lessons, especially Geography, you will know that Indonesia has more than 17,000 islands. These islands have a variety of cultural, artistic and culinary treasures. Some of them are listed as the largest islands in Indonesia, namely Kalimantan, Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi and Papua.

But among these largest islands, Kalimantan Island is one of the rare and safe from the danger of Earthquakes, which is a natural event where we will feel vibrations from small to large scale vibrations, which can cause damage to houses, land fractures and trigger tsunami waves.

The question is, why does Kalimantan Island tend to be safe and earthquakes are rare?

According to the Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG), Kalimantan is the only island in Indonesia with a low seismicity level. In fact, Kalimantan itself has fault centers and a history of earthquake activity in the past. Some of the fault centers in Kalimantan are no longer active in triggering earthquakes.

In addition, the island of Borneo is also quite far from the megathrust zone (plate collision). This makes earthquakes that occur in Kalimantan less powerful than those in other parts of Indonesia, especially when compared to Java.

This is what makes Kalimantan Island tend to be safe and rare for earthquakes, especially earthquakes that have a large scale of strength.

Another explanation why Kalimantan is safe from earthquakes

Location: Kalimantan is located in the middle of the Sunda Plate, which is a relatively stable plate. This means that there is less tectonic activity in the area, which reduces the risk of earthquakes.

Volcanic activity: Kalimantan does not have any active volcanoes. This is another factor that reduces the risk of earthquakes.

Distance from the ocean: Kalimantan is not located near any major fault lines in the ocean. This means that it is less likely to be affected by tsunamis or other seismic events that originate in the ocean.

Of course, no place is completely safe from earthquakes. However, Kalimantan is generally considered to be a safer place than other parts of Indonesia, such as Java and Sumatra.

Additional facts about earthquakes in Kalimantan :

The largest earthquake ever recorded in Kalimantan was a magnitude 7.9 earthquake that occurred in 1935.
The most recent major earthquake in Kalimantan was a magnitude 6.1 earthquake that occurred in 2018.
Earthquakes in Kalimantan are typically not as destructive as earthquakes in other parts of Indonesia because of the island's relatively stable geology.
Overall, Kalimantan is a relatively safe place from earthquakes. However, it is always important to be aware of the risks and to take precautions, such as staying away from coastal areas during seismic events.