Beruflich Dokumente
Kultur Dokumente
Login
Sign Up
HELP
SEARCH
Pictures
Social Media
Learn
Panic but no tsunami from strong Indonesia quake as Geelong man tells of climbing to higher ground amid panic
AFP, Angus Thompson Herald Sun April 12, 2012 9:22AM
41 COMMENTS
Earthquake in Indonesia
Indonesia quake
ADVERTISEMENT
1. 2. 3. 4.
Ex-Roo saves son from crazed dog Teen mania hits town Family gathers as Gibb fights for life Bombers find a way to win AFL 'stalker' suspect on 71 charges
EARTHQUAKE IN INDONESIA
5.
LATEST NEWS
UPDATE: PEOPLE in Indonesia and Thailand are returning to their homes after an Indian Ocean-wide tsunami alert, triggered by a massive quake, was cancelled.
Residents and tourists were forced to flee amid fears of a tsunami following two huge earthquakes off the the island of Sumatra yesterday afternoon. The earthquakes - measuring 8.6 and 8.2 in magnitude - triggered tsunami warnings for 28 countries lining the Indian Ocean including Indonesia, Thailand, Singapore, India, Malaysia and Sri Lanka. The quake was felt as far afield as Thailand, where skyscrapers in the capital Bangkok swayed. India, Indonesia, Kenya, Malaysia, Reunion Island, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Myanmar all issued alerts or evacuation orders which were later lifted. Waves of up to 80 centimetres hit Indonesia's Aceh province, but there were no reports of damage or casualties. US seismologists then cancelled the tsunami warning two hours after the first Indonesian quake at 2.30pm (5.30pm AEST) yesterday, saying the quakes had generated only small waves and were nowhere near the scale of the disasters that struck Asia in 2004 and Japan last year.
ESSENDON Football Club players have been stranded in Brisbane after their Melbourne-bound flight was diverted this afternoon.
ABOUT 384 prisoners including militants escaped from a jail in northwestern Pakistan early on Sunday after an attack by insurgents.
AN army of 1200 commuters will be enlisted by the Baillieu Government to tell public transport chiefs what is going wrong with myki.
97 comments on this Coates dark at PM's Olympics snub story
INDONESIAN PRESIDENT YUDHOYONO SPEAKS AT A PRESS CONFERENCE FOLLOWING THE QUAKE. PICTURE: AFP
converted by Web2PDFConvert.com
The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Hawaii said the threat of a tsunami has "diminished or is over for most areas". Earlier in Banda Aceh, there were chaotic scenes as people grabbed their families and raced through crowded streets, with motorbikes and cars jostling for space. "There are people trying to evacuate, some are praying and children at a school were panicking as teachers tried to get them out," an AFP correspondent in Banda Aceh said. "There are traffic jams everywhere as people are trying to get away from the coast -- many are on motorcycles," he said, adding that telephone connections and electricity were patchy. Television images showed hundreds gathering at a large mosque in Banda Aceh, many weeping and searching for family members. Women and girls draped head-to-toe in white were praying on mats laid out on the ground.
AAP
RECOMMENDED COVERAGE
Earthquake in Indonesia
PM Julia Gillard's decision not to attend the London Olympics has raised the ire of Australian Olympic boss John Coates.
43 comments on this The story case against Casey Council
PETER ROLFE
VICTORIA'S largest council has called for a third major probe into its own cover-ups amid calls to sack councillors and officials.
25 comments on this story
Why Penny Stocks are the Road to Riches for Many Small Investors The Secret to Getting Thin No Matter What You Eat
THE 8.6 MAGNITUDE QUAKE STRUCK 200KM FROM THE DISASTROUS 2004 QUAKE THAT TRIGGERED A DEADLY TSUNAMI.
Breaking news video! Watch the latest Local and National breaking news Celebrity news and video! Up to the minute celebrity gossip, photos & celebrity videos Start with one Find out how you can make 1 degree of difference
In Sri Lanka the disaster management centre asked residents on the coast to move inland to avoid being hit by any large waves. In the capital Colombo, nervous crowds gathered on the streets. "There was a first jolt for five seconds, then a pause and then a really big one. It was really frightening, the whole room was shaking," said 42-year-old tourist Maria Teresa Pizarro from the Philippines. "You could hear the wood in the furniture cracking, the curtains were moving and the ceiling fan was rattling. I just picked up the children and ran downstairs." Thailand issued an evacuation order for its Andaman coast, a popular tourist destination, and flights to the tourist island of Phuket were diverted to other airports as passengers and staff were evacuated to higher ground.\ A small tsunami measuring just 10 cm reached the coast before Thailand, like other countries, lifted its warning. "At this point people can be relieved," said Somsak Khaosuwan, the director of Thailand's National Disaster Warning Centre. India issued a red high-level tsunami warning for the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, located in the Indian Ocean, and lower alerts for several other eastern coastal states. Tremors were felt in the Indian eastern city of Kolkata, where cracks appeared in some tall buildings. A large number of people rushed out of offices in the city's central Park street area as windows and doors rattled. In the Maldives, where luxury resorts cater to well-heeled holiday makers, hotels moved tourists away from beaches, with some even issuing guests with life jackets as a precaution.
converted by Web2PDFConvert.com
TOURISTS ON THE ROADSIDE AFTER BEING TOLD TO MOVE TO HIGHER GROUND IN PHUKET PICTURE: EPA .
A Geelong man last night told the Herald Sun he said he was forced to flee a Phuket bar as thousands of people scrambled to higher ground following the tsunami alert. Peter Williamson, 30, said it was total chaos as tourists and locals ran from the beachfront to a nearby mountain. We were having a few drinks at a bar and people just started bolting down the street. One of my mates heard someone yell tsunami, Mr Williamson said. We bolted. Everyone was panicking at the start but once we got a fair way up the mountain everyone relaxed a bit. He said thousands of people, many Australians, waited for hours on a nearby mountain in Pa Tong. Were not staying in a high rise. Were a couple of hundred metres back from the beachfront but were on the same level. So were just waiting it out until its definitely safe to go back, he said. Mr Williamson said there were no local authorities directing the panicked crowd. We really dont know whats going on, theres no authority up here and were being guided on watching the locals walk back down, he said.
Australian Bonnie Muddle, holidaying in Phuket, said people were being evacuated from popular tourist areas including Krabi and Phang Nga bay. The Phuket airport was closed temporarily. Sea-level readings indicated a tsunami measuring 1m reached Meulaboh,
converted by Web2PDFConvert.com
Indonesia. A water-level increase of about 0.3m was reported in Sabang, and a 10cm tsunami was reported on the Thai coast. The first quake struck at a depth of 23km, the US Geological Survey (USGS) reported. Its epicenter was located 434km southwest of Banda Aceh, where 170,000 people were killed in a 2004 tsunami. An 8.2-magnitude aftershock struck off Sumatra at 4.40pm (7.40pm AEST). The aftershock, which lasted for four minutes, struck 615km from Banda Aceh. Experts said the first quake was caused by tectonic plates moving horizontally on the sea floor and that the chance of a large-scale tsunami was minimal. Geoscience Australia senior seismologist Clive Collins said there were several reasons why the initial quake wasnt as catastrophic as the 2004 Boxing Day earthquake. Firstly, the size of it: it was 8.6 to our best estimate, whereas one in 2004 was 9.2, so its considerably smaller," he said. It was also a lot further away, whereas the last one was much closer, he said.
WOMEN IN ACEH HUDDLE TOGETHER AFTER THE QUAKE STRUCK OFF SUMATRA. PICTURE: AFP
British Prime Minister David Cameron was in Jakarta at the time the first earthquake struck. Mr Cameron held a news conference in Jakarta with Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, who said there were no reports of any casualties from the first quake. Indonesia straddles a series of fault lines that makes the vast island nation prone to volcanic and seismic activity. On December 26, 2004 a 9.2-magnitude earthquake off Sumatra generated a catastrophic tsunami that wrought devastation across southern Asia, killing an estimated 220,000 people. Last year, a 9.0-magnitude earthquake caused a tsunami and nuclear disaster in Japan, killing about 19,000 people. - with NewsCore
converted by Web2PDFConvert.com
A WOMAN AND CHILDREN IN ACEH RUN FOR SAFETY FOLLOWING THE QUAKE. PICTURE: AFP
Ads By Google
Share
Comments: 41
Comments on this story
Matthew of Melbourne
Earthquakes and at times tsunamis are a part of life in this region. The Boxing Day Tsunami of 2004 was devastating for the region. How anyone could cast harsh judgements upon locals who ran for their lives and evacuated tourists from the beaches and tourist areas close to the sea is beyond me. I guarantee had Australia been exposed to such events, we'd be terrified too especially after a tsunami of the magnitude that hit the coast lines of Thailand, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, and Japan last year. People need to get a heart!
Posted at 1:38 PM April 12, 2012
MK Greens
This is happening more often now due to climate change!
Posted at 1:28 PM April 12, 2012
Amazed
I cant believe that everyone needs to have a dig at others comments, when disaster strikes we pray to God, Allah or the Easter bunny - who cares! Just think of how stupid the average person is, and then realize half of them are even stupider! May everyone be safe - isn't that the main point?
Posted at 1:07 PM April 12, 2012
converted by Web2PDFConvert.com
TRUECRIMESCENE
OPINION
WORLD
BUSINESS
GALLERY
They've stared down a fleet of whaling ships, been attacked with flash grenades and pelted with high-powered water cannons
ADVERTISEMENT
RESOURCES
Site Photo sales RSS
ADVERTISING
Specifications Place an Ad
POLICIES
Privacy Terms of Use
INFORMATION
About Us Contact Us Careers Work Experience
converted by Web2PDFConvert.com