breaking news - serious earthquake in Indonesia
 

updates soon to follow

Wow, Looks pretty bad. They seem to be having alot recently

it's an 8.0 earthquake, that will have caused an tremendous amount of damage

Powerful quake shakes Indonesia

A powerful earthquake has struck Indonesia, triggering a tsunami alert.

The earth tremor had a magnitude of 8.0, according to the Indonesian Meteorological Institute.

The tremor caused buildings in the capital to sway, the Associated Press reported. There are no reports yet of any damage or casualties.

Indonesia, which lies on an arc of volcanoes and fault lines, is frequently shaken by earth tremors.

Powerful quake shakes Indonesia

A powerful earthquake has struck off the western Indonesian island of Sumatra, triggering a tsunami alert.

The earth tremor had a magnitude of 7.9, according to the Indonesian Meteorological Institute.

It caused buildings in the capital, Jakarta, to sway, and some offices were evacuated, reports say. There are no reports of damage or casualties.

A massive undersea earthquake sparked a tsunami that killed more than 130,000 people in Indonesia in December 2004.

Indonesia, which lies on an arc of volcanoes and fault lines, is frequently shaken by earth tremors.

Powerful quake shakes Indonesia

A powerful earthquake has struck off the western Indonesian island of Sumatra, triggering a tsunami alert.

The tremor had a magnitude of 7.9, according to the Indonesian Meteorological Institute.

It caused buildings in the capital, Jakarta, to sway, and some offices were evacuated, reports say. There are no reports of damage or casualties.

A massive undersea earthquake sparked a tsunami that killed more than 130,000 people in Indonesia in December 2004.

Indonesia, part of the seismically active Pacific "Ring of Fire", is frequently shaken by earth tremors.

The latest quake struck at 1810 (1110 GMT), about 15km (nine miles) under the sea, some 100km (60 miles) south-west of the city of Bengkulu, the US Geological Survey said.

more updates to follow

JAKARTA, Indonesia -- A strong earthquake measuring 7.9 in magnitude struck Wednesday near southern Indonesia, the U.S. Geological Survey said.

A tsunami watch was immediately issued for the area.

The earthquake, which struck Bengkulu province, Sumatra, has caused buildings to sway in Indonesia's capital city, Jakarta, the Associated Press reported.

Ken Navidad at the USGS in Denver said the tsunami centers in the Pacific and Alaska initially said two quakes, but he did not know why. He said his agency has measured only one.

Tsunami warning centers in Hawaii and Alaska said no tsunamis were expected in their areas.

Indonesia, which sits on the Pacific Basin's "Ring of Fire" - an arc of volcanos and fault lines, is prone to seismic upheaval.

In December 2004, a massive earthquake off Sumatra island triggered a tsunami that killed more than 230,000 people, including 160,000 people in Indonesia's province of Aceh.

# Story Highlights
# Two strong earthquakes strike southern Indonesia
# The quakes measure 8.0 and 7.9 in magnitude, U.S. Geological Survey said
# A tsunami watch has been issued for the area

yeah sorry about that - I ate del taco last night - my bad

more news coming in soon

JAKARTA -- A massive 7.9-magnitude quake struck off the western coast of Indonesia's Sumatra island on Wednesday, prompting authorities to issue a tsunami warning, meteorologists said.

The undersea earthquake, which hit at 6:10 pm (1110 GMT), struck in the sea some 100 kilometers (60 miles) southwest of the city of Bengkulu, at a depth of roughly 15 kilometers, the US Geological Survey said.

The quake was strongly felt in the capital Jakarta, some 600 kilometers away, with tall buildings swaying.

An official at the Indonesian Meteorology and Geophysics Agency said a tsunami warning had been issued.

Indonesia was the nation worst hit by the earthquake-triggered tsunami of December 2004, which killed some 168,000 people in Aceh province alone.

The archipelago nation sits on the Pacific "Ring of Fire" where continental plates collide, causing frequent seismic and volcanic activity.

JAKARTA, Indonesia - A powerful earthquake hit Indonesia on Wednesday, causing buildings to sway strongly in the capital, and authorities issued a tsunami warning for much of the Indian Ocean region.

The U.S. Geological Survey said the quake had a preliminary magnitude of 7.9 and hit at about 6:10 p.m. (1110 GMT). It was centered about 9.7 miles underground in the southern Sumatra area, it said.

There also were reports of a second quake in Sumatra, but details were sketchy.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center issued a tsunami warning for wide areas of the region.

"Earthquakes of this size have the potential to generate a widespread destructive tsunami that can affect coastlines across the entire Indian Ocean Basin," it said.

In Jakarta, tall buildings swayed for several minutes, and occupants rushed down the stairs to escape.

Indonesia, the world's largest archipelago, is prone to seismic upheaval due to its location on the so-called Pacific "Ring of Fire," an arc of volcanos and fault lines encircling the Pacific Basin.

In December 2004, a massive earthquake struck off Sumatra island and triggered a tsunami that killed more than 230,000 people in a dozen countries, including 160,000 people in Indonesia's westernmost province of Aceh.

developing story

JAKARTA, Indonesia — Two powerful earthquakes hit Indonesia on Wednesday, causing buildings to sway in the capital, and authorities issued a tsunami warning for much of the Indian Ocean region, The Associated Press and Reuters reported.

The U.S. Geological Survey said the first quake had a preliminary magnitude of 7.9 and hit at about 6:10 p.m. (7:10 a.m. EDT). It was centered 9.7 miles underground in the southern Sumatra area, the USGS said.

Shortly after, Reuters reported a second earthquake of the same magnitude hit Indonesia's Sumatra region.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center issued a tsunami warning for wide areas of the region.

"Earthquakes of this size have the potential to generate a widespread destructive tsunami that can affect coastlines across the entire Indian Ocean Basin," it said.

In Jakarta, tall buildings swayed for several minutes after the first temblor, and occupants rushed down the stairs to escape.

Indonesia, the world's largest archipelago, is prone to seismic upheaval due to its location on the so-called Pacific "Ring of Fire," an arc of volcanoes and fault lines encircling the Pacific Basin.

more information coming in a few minutes

wow I have been there in 2004

ohhh shit

soon to be updated

Alerte au tsunami étendue à l'océan Indien

Le centre américain d'alerte aux tsunamis du Pacifique a émis un avis d'alerte pour l'ensemble de la région de l'océan Indien après un très important séisme au large de la côte occidentale de Sumatra, dans l'ouest de l'Indonésie.

7.9-magnitude . fuck that's bad

JAKARTA - An earthquake measuring 8.0 struck Indonesia's Sumatra region on Wednesday, the United States Geological Survey said.

The quake had the potential to cause a tsunami, an Indonesian meteorological agency official said, putting the magnitude at 7.9.

Some offices in Jakarta were evacuated after the tremors were felt. Witnesses in Singapore and Thailand said they also felt the quake.

any actual tsunamis?

more information is rolling in now

Powerful quake shakes Indonesia
A powerful earthquake has struck off the western Indonesian island of Sumatra, triggering a tsunami alert.

The tremor had a magnitude of 7.9, according to the Indonesian Meteorological Institute.

It caused buildings in the capital, Jakarta, to sway, and some offices were evacuated, reports say. There are no reports of damage or casualties.

A massive undersea earthquake sparked a tsunami that killed more than 130,000 people in Indonesia in December 2004.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre issued a tsunami alert for the entire Indian Ocean region following the latest quake.

Indonesia, part of the seismically active Pacific "Ring of Fire", is frequently shaken by earth tremors.

Wednesday's earthquake struck at 1810 (1110 GMT), about 15km (nine miles) under the sea, some 100km (60 miles) south-west of the city of Bengkulu, the US Geological Survey said.

The BBC's Lucy Williamson in Jakarta says the quake was the most powerful one in Indonesia since the one which caused the tsunami in 2004, and was dangerously shallow.

She says quakes on this scale are rare and memories of 2004 have made people terrified of a repeat.

JAKARTA, Indonesia -- A strong earthquake measuring 7.9 in magnitude struck Wednesday near southern Indonesia, the U.S. Geological Survey said.

A tsunami watch was immediately issued for the area.

The earthquake struck at 1810 local time (1110 GMT) Bengkulu province.

Several skyscrapers in Jakarta were rocked by the quake, which came at the end of the work day, said Andy Saputra, CNN producer in Jakarta.

"It's pretty strong and people are being evacuated from the tall buildings," he said.

The Financial Times' John Aglionby, speaking from Jakarta, told CNN: "The windows started shaking, the chairs started shaking - everything was shaking. We were up on the 16th floor of the building and decided we had to get out.

"It was a very bizarre experience. Some people were getting scared."

Jakarta is 605 km (375 miles) southeast of the epicenter. The epicenter believed to be Bengkulu Province in southern Sumatra.

Although some employees were too afraid to leave their offices, companies ordered immediate emergency evacuations, he said.

Workers exited structures via fire stairs and went into the street, away from buildings and other potential dangers, Saputra added.

High-rise buildings also were evacuated in Singapore, CNN Producer Martin Bohley said.

He said he felt shaking for almost a minute. "At first I wasn't quite sure, then I reconfirmed with staff at the hotel, then I turned on local media here, and local media had reported that several high-rise locations had felt it so strong that they had evacuated."

Ken Navidad at the USGS in Denver said the tsunami centers in the Pacific and Alaska initially said two quakes, but he did not know why. He said his agency has measured only one.

Tsunami warning centers in Hawaii and Alaska said no tsunamis were expected in their areas.


Indonesia, which sits on the Pacific Basin's "Ring of Fire" - an arc of volcanos and fault lines, is prone to seismic upheaval.

In December 2004, a massive earthquake off Sumatra island triggered a tsunami that killed more than 230,000 people, including 160,000 people in Indonesia's province of Aceh.

7,9 und Tsunami-Warnung
Erdbeben auf Sumatra

Ein starkes Erdbeben hat die indonesische Insel Sumatra erschüttert und in südostasiatischen Ländern Angst vor einem Tsunami ausgelöst. Wie das US-Institut Geological Survey mitteilte, erreichte das Beben eine Stärke von 7,9. Unklar blieb zunächst, ob es sich um ein oder zwei Beben handelte. In der Stadt Padang im Westen Sumatras stürzten Fernsehberichten zufolge einige Gebäude ein.

Nach Angaben des meteorologischen Amts Indonesiens könnte das Beben einen Tsunami auslösen. Die indischen Behörden gaben für die Andamanen-Inseln eine Tsunami-Warnung heraus. Ähnlich reagierten die malaysischen Behörden. Sie riefen die Bürger dazu auf, den Stränden fernzubleiben. In der indonesischen Hauptstadt Jakarta wurden Bürogebäude evakuiert.

Auch in Singapur und Thailand war das Beben zu spüren.

international news sites are now picking up the story