Thaindian News

By Madhuri Dey
Padang, Sep 30, (THAINDIAN NEWS) Following the devastating earthquake that had rocked the entire American Samoa region on Tuesday, a fresh earthquake with a magnitude of 7.9 has reportedly struck Western Indonesia on Wednesday thereby triggering Tsunami alert for the regions situated along the Indian Ocean.

According to the US Geological Survey, the quake had a magnitude of 7.9. The effect of the quake is speculated to be a considerably massive one as some of the television networks of Indonesia have reported that several buildings have collapsed in the coastal city of Padang, situated at Southern Sumatra province. Sources revealed that the epicenter of the quake was 50 km off the coast, quite close to the city of Padang. Although initial reports suggest that several buildings have collapsed in the city of Padang, it is yet unclear that whether there have been any casualties or not.

Soon after the fresh quake shook the regions of Western Indonesia, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center issued a tsunami alert for the regions which are situated along the Indian Ocean like Malaysia, India, Indonesia and Thailand. An e mail statement said, “There is a possibility of a destructive regional Tsunami in the Indian ocean.”

According to the eye witnesses the residents of Padang evacuated their respective homes and housings as soon as they felt the tremor. “People are panicking. They are running out of the buildings…There are many collapsed buildings,” said a panic stricken eyewitness in the city of Padang in Sumatra Island. The tremors were reportedly felt by the residents living in the high rises in the city of Jakarta, which is several hundred miles away. The quake was also felt in certain regions of Singapore and Malaysia.