A massive 7.9-magnitude quake struck off the western coast of Indonesia's Sumatra island on Wednesday at local time about 6:10 p.m. (7:10 a.m. EDT), triggering a tsunami warning for the entire Indian Ocean region.
The undersea earthquake erupted offshore at around 1100 GMT some 100 kilometres (60 miles) southwest of the city of Bengkulu
at a depth of roughly 15 kilometres, the United States Geological Survey said.
There were no early reports of injuries or death, but the quake rocked high-rise buildings some 600 kilometres further south in the capital Jakarta. There were scenes of panic as frightened office workers ran into the streets.
The Indonesian authorities immediately issued a tsunami alert which was flashed up on state television and carried on radio stations.
The Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre in Hawaii said an alert was in effect for the entire Indian Ocean area including Indonesia, India, Sri Lanka, Thailand and the Maldives -- countries all affected by the devastating December 2004 Asian tsunami.
Those like us who are living in the west coast of the country have also warned by the Malaysian government not to go the coast area.
Source: Tsunami warning as huge quake rocks northern Indonesia @ AFP