Panic spread
across Indonesia today after tsunami warnings were issued following two massive
earthquakes off its coast during a visit there by Prime Minister David Cameron.
Thousands of
people in Aceh - 270 miles from the epicentre of the first 8.7 magnitude quake
- fled to the hills fearing a repeat of the deadly 2004 Boxing Day disaster
which devastated the province.
In the main
city of Banda Aceh, terrified residents screamed 'God is great!' as they jumped
into cars and the backs of motorcycles, clogging streets as they fled to high
ground.
Panic: People
in Banda Aceh scramble to ecsape the city after a tsunami warning was issued.
There are fears that a tsunami could be as bad as the one on Boxing Day in 2004
Concern: An
Acehnese woman with a child tries to stop a car to go to higher ground after
tremors are felt
Buildings
shook for four minutes and there were reports of people jumping from windows in
a desperate attempt to escape.
Then, four
hours later, a massive aftershock - with a similarly huge magnitude of 8.2 -
struck only 110 miles further out to sea, unleashing even more panic.
A tsunami
alert was issued for other countries across the Indian Ocean today, including
India, Sri Lanka, Australia, Burma, Thailand, the Maldives and other Indian
Ocean islands, Malaysia, Pakistan, Somalia, Oman, Iran, Bangladesh, Kenya,
South Africa and Singapore.
There are
fears of a repeat of the 9.1-magnitude quake seven years go that triggered a
tsunami that killed 230,000 people. Nearly three quarters lived in Aceh, which
is on the Sumatra island.
The first
quake, which was centred 20 miles beneath the ocean floor, was later thought
unlikely to have triggered a fatal wave.
However, the
aftershock, which was centred 10 miles
beneath the ocean around 380 miles from the provincial capital, Banda Aceh, may
yet unleash a giant wave.
Roger Musson,
seismologist at the British geological survey who has studied Sumatra's fault
lines, said the first tremor was a strike-slip quake, not a thrust quake, which
causes the sea bed to flip up.
Mr Cameron is
visiting the country’s capital, Jakarta, which is 1,600 miles south-east of the
province and on a different island, Java. No tremors have been felt there and
the city is unlikely to be hit.
He told
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono: ‘Our thoughts should be with those who are
affected.
‘Britain of
course stands ready to help if help is required.
‘We will
stand with you and your government and your people at this time of worry.
Gone in a
blur: Acehnese people escape in motorcycles and tuk tuks
Mr Yudhoyono
moved to calm nerves, saying that there appeared to be no serious casualties
and local residents had been taken to safety.
Visit: David
Cameron talks to Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono after his
arrival at the Presidential Palace in Jakarta today
Strike point:
The spot where the earthquake hit and bubbles that show where the tsunami is
most likely to hit
He added that
‘as of this time there is no threat of tsunami’ - despite an international
warning being issued.
He added:
‘The situation is under control so far. It is a very different situation from
2004 when Aceh was faced with a deadly tsunami.’
The tremor
was felt in Singapore, Thailand, Bangladesh, Malaysia and India. A tsunami
warning has been issued for cities all along the coast of Sumatra.
There were
also reports of the water level dropping in the Thai resort of Phuket - a sign
that the sea is drawing back in preparation to launch an enormous wave.
A tsunami
watch means there is the potential for a tsunami, not that one is imminent.
Since 2004 such warnings are issued after every earthquake in the Pacific.
Indonesia
straddles a series of fault lines that makes the vast island nation prone to
volcanic and seismic activity.
Last year's
devastating tsunami in Japan was triggered by an earthquake with a similar
hypocentre depth 20 miles below the surface.
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