8.6 Earthquake Off the Coast of Sumatra and Tsunami Warning

Magnitude	8.6
Date-Time	Wednesday, April 11, 2012 at 08:38:37 UTC Wednesday, April 11, 2012 at 02:38:37 PM at epicenter Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones
Location	2.311°N, 93.063°E
Depth	22.9 km (14.2 miles)
Region	OFF THE WEST COAST OF NORTHERN SUMATRA
Distances	434 km (269 miles) SW of Banda Aceh, Sumatra, Indonesia 550 km (341 miles) SW of Lhokseumawe, Sumatra, Indonesia 963 km (598 miles) W of KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia 1797 km (1116 miles) WNW of JAKARTA, Java, Indonesia
Location Uncertainty	horizontal +/- 13.5 km (8.4 miles); depth +/- 2.6 km (1.6 miles)
Parameters	NST=395, Nph=397, Dmin=514.3 km, Rmss=1.52 sec, Gp= 18°, M-type=(unknown type), Version=B
Source	Magnitude: USGS NEIC (WDCS-D) Location: USGS NEIC (WDCS-D)

India on Wednesday issued atsunami warning for Nicobar islands and alerted the coastal regions of Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh after an earthquake of 8.9 magnitude hit waters off western coast of northern Sumatra.

"We have issued a tsunami warning for Nicobar islands," Shailesh Nayak, Secretary Ministry ofEarth Sciences told PTI.

The projections issued by the Indian Tsunami Early Warning Centre (ITEWC) showed the tidal waves triggered by the quake hitting parts of Nicobar, Komatra and Katchal minutes after it struck the region at 14:08 IST.
The ITEWC also issued an alert for coastal Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and the Andaman islands forecasting the arrival time of the first wave.
For Tamil Nadu, the first wave was expected to reach the coastal regions at around 4:33pm.
Strong tremors were felt in Chennai and some other nearby areas. People in multi storeyed apartments and those working in high rise buildings rushed out to open areas.
Kolkata and its neighbourhood were rocked by tremors which were also felt in North 24 Parganas adjoining Kolkata and in the north Bengal town of Siliguri.
A large number of people rushed out of offices in Park street and downtown BBD Bagh area here as windows and doors rattled.
According to reports, some buildings on Park street developed cracks.
Metro Rail services in the metropolis were suspended from 2:42 pm and passengers were asked to vacate stations.
The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Hawaii said a tsunami watch was in effect forIndonesia, India, Sri Lanka, Australia, Myanmar, Thailand, the Maldives and other Indian Ocean islands, Malaysia, Pakistan, Somalia, Oman, Iran, Bangladesh, Kenya, South Africa andSingapore.
A tsunami watch means there is the potential for a tsunami, not that one is imminent.
The US Geological Survey said the powerful quake was centered 33 kilometers beneath the ocean floor