Earthquake and tsunami updates - 11/04/2012

At 2:17 PM: Indonesia's geophysical agency says earthquake of 8.9 on Richter scale off Aceh, issues tsunami warning. Indian ocean-wide Tsunami watch in effect - Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre
At 2:34: US Geological Survey said the quake was centred 33 kilometres beneath the ocean floor around 495 kilometres from the provincial capital of Banda Aceh.
At 2:40 PM: Coastal regions of Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Andaman islands also put on alert following Sumatra quake.

At 3:30 PM: An earthquake measuring 3.4 on the Richter scale was recorded in the Arabia Sea, the Met office said. The shock registered at 18.6 degree latitude and 71.3 degree longitude in the Arabian Sea," Met department director Rajeev Nair said. The epicentre was 155 km from Mumbai, he said.
At 3:40 PM: Mumbai tremors: There were reports of tremors being felt in some parts of north Mumbai but the Met department said these could not be verified so far.
At 3:45 PM - Damage in Indonesia: Indonesia's disaster management agency said power was down in Aceh province and people were gathering on high ground as sirens warned of the danger. "The electricity is down, there are traffic jams to access higher ground. Sirens and Koran recitals from mosques are everywhere," said Sutopo, spokesman for the agency.
3:50 PM; In Sri Lanka: Wednesday's quake was also felt in Sri Lanka, where office workers in the capital, Colombo, fled their offices, and the southern Thai holiday island of Phuket, both of which were hit hard by the 2004 tsunami.
3:55 PM; In Bangladesh: In Bangladesh, where two tremors were felt, authorities also said there appeared to be no threat of a tsunami.
3:56; No casualty in Aceh: Indonesia's President says no reports of casualties or damage from quake in Aceh.
4:00 PM; RS Dattatrey, Director Siesmology, IMD: People should remain careful, especially in Kolkata and the eastern coastal areas of India. Tsunami may reach Indian coast in 30 minutes.
4:01 PM; Low connectivity in Indonesia: Very low telephone connectivity in Indonesia. Almost no communication with people there. No damage due to earthquake, but the bigger worry is the tsunami now. High tsunami alert in Sri Lanka as well.
4:02 PM; CNN-IBN's Pratibha Parameshwaran from Chennai: No measures taken yet, except for the warning. Coastal TN on high alert but no evacuations so far. Earthquake lasted a few seconds. No property damage reported so far. People on the watch. Most fishing happens during mornings or evenings. A warning for safety measures has been issued.
4:04 PM; CNN-IBN's Dakshina Muraleedharan from Kerala: Immediate reaction of people was to run down from highrises and some panic. Coastal police trying to get in touch with fishermen to warn them of the tsunami. The memories of the 2004 tsunami still fresh in many people's minds in Kerala. The Met dept is telling people not to panic. Officials are busy asking people to be on alert and not panic. The government is gearing up for any eventuality.
4:05 PM; CNN-IBN's Priyanka Gupta from Kolkata: Substantial length of coast in WB. Official at Haldia confirmed the facilities on alert. Concern for fishermen already at sea. No way of knowing for those fishermen about the tsunami alert. Metro shut down, passengers evacuated. IT centre in Kolkata evacuated. Fishermen remain the biggest worry for the government.
4:08 PM; Indian embassy in Bangkok: The Indian embassy in Bangkok is on high alert. Bangkok is a popular tourist destination for Indians. India issues tsunami warning for Nicobar islands.
4:08 PM; Dakshina from Thiruvananthapuram: Disaster management teams ready to face any eventuality. There is technology to get in touch with the fishermen. Means being tried to contact them at the earliest.
4:09 PM Prathibha from Chennai: Local channels reporting a tsunami likely to hit Chennai coast at 5 pm. Police clearing the area.
CNN-IBN's Palki: Reports that water receding along the coast of Phuket, which is a cause of worry.
In West Bengal: Tremors were also felt in North 24 Parganas adjoining Kolkata and in the north Bengal town of Siliguri, officials said. According to reports, some buildings on Park street in the metropolis developed cracks. Metro Rail services in the city were suspended from 2:42 PM and passengers were asked to vacate stations. Officials in the Seismological Centre here said the epicentre of the high intensity earthquake was on the west coast of northern Sumatra.
Response: Union Home Secretary R K Singh speaks to Chief Secretary of all coastal states. David Cameron tells Indonesian president he's "hugely concerned" by earthquake off Aceh and UK "stands ready to help". Tsunami "less likely" because earthquake off Indonesia moved horizontally, not vertically, USGS spokesman tells BBC.
In Andaman and Nicobar Islands: No waves noticed so far in Andaman and Nicobar Islands; tsunami virtually ruled out, says NDMA vice president Sasidhra Reddy.
Expert on Tsunami: One expert told the BBC the quake as a "strike-slip" fault, meaning a more horizontal shift of the ground under the sea as opposed to a sudden vertical shift, and less risk of a large displacement of water triggering a tsunami.
Alert for 28 countries: The Pacific tsunami warning centre has said that the tsunami alert for 28 countries remains in effect, and has also said that a 17cm wave is heading towards Aceh, which is not very large. However the speed of the wave is not yet known.
Celeb Tweets: Filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt ‏tweeted: "Pooja is in Phuket scouting locations for Jism 2. She just called saying that the Tsunami is about to hit Phuket. The Occean is receding."
4:14 PM: NDMA scales down the tsunami threat. No threat in Indian Ocean.
Kolkata Metro resumes services.
Meenakshi Mahadevan from Chennai: Some people reaching Marina Beach now. Sea doesn’t look threatening right now. Met sending constant alerts.
4:15 PM; CNN: Tsunami watch for the entire Indian ocean. 8.7 earthquake is a big deal, the likes of which we saw in Japan recently and back in 2004 in the same areas. Epicentre 431 kms away from Banda Aceh which is too close to the northern coast of Sumatra island. The tsunami must have reached that area by now.
4:18 Cabinet secretary to CNN-IBN: PM has issued instructions to take all preacuations. There is no need to panic, if fishermen are on high seas there is no need to panic.
Ajit Kumar Seth, Cabinet Secy: As per reports the quake has not created a Tsunami wave. Maximum wave height generated in Andaman Nicobar is 30 cm.
4:19 PMPTI: No cause for panic along India's coastline. Government is ready to deal with any eventuality: Union Home Secretary R K Singh.
4:20 Fresh tremors felt in South and East of India.
4:21 PTI: Govt evacuates some people from South Andaman as a precautionary measure: sources
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