Sumatra quake triggers tsunami alerts along coasts of Bangladesh, other areas

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A tsunami may surge up to Bangladesh coast after Wednesday midnight following an earthquake near southern Sumatra of Indonesia, a Met warning said, report UNB/ bdnews24.com/Reuters.
"It may generate tsunami wave in the Bay of Bengal of the North Indian Ocean that may reach Bangladesh coast after Wednesday midnight," said a Met Office bulletin in the evening.
A massive earthquake measuring 8.5 on the Richter scale hit near southern Sumatra of Indonesia in the afternoon. The earthquake may trigger undersea waves called tsunami in Japanese terms.
In Cox's Bazar hundreds of tourists and hawkers were asked to immediately leave the beach soon after receiving the warning that tsunami might hit the coastal belt at around Wednesday midnight.
Administration and Red Crescent activists spread along the beach at 7-30 pm and asking the people through hailers to run for safety.
Spot reports said that water level unusually rose by about 2.5 feet at 8-20 pm sparking panic among the tourists and the residents of the resort town.
Fishing boats and trawlers sailed to the sea Wednesday morning when it became calm after three days of rough weather. Many of them were seen still engaged in fishing. Red Crescent or the administration officials could not reach the warning message to them.
First hand reports said no step was taken till 8-30 pm to evacuate the residents living in low lying areas in and around the town.
The national football team undergoing training on the beach withdrew from the camp and retreated to the hotel.
Samarendra Karmaker, director of the Meteorological Department, said his office had issued a tsunami warning.
"If nothing happens, we will withdraw the warning," he said.
"If a tsunami forms, it may strike the coastal areas of Bangladesh after midnight," he said.
Meteorologist Monowar Hossain of the Patenga weather office in Chittagong said there was a forecast that not only the Bangladesh coastal areas, but also those of the countries along the Indian Ocean, were likely to be hit in the event of a tsunami.
Deputy commissioner Ashraf Shamim said steps were being taken to evacuate people from low-lying coastal areas to safer places in Chittagong.
Loudspeakers were used in all areas and even from mosques asking people to move to cyclone and other shelters. All members of the local administration had been directed to take necessary measures in this regard, he added.
In a statement, the Disaster Management Bureau Wednesday repeated the same warning for a possible tsunami and asked residents of Sandwip and other coastal areas to move to safety.
The Sumatra earthquake triggered tsunami warnings in the Indian Ocean and sparking panic in coastal areas across southeast Asia.
Malaysian authorities reported a tsunami measuring 1-3 metres in height and heading away from the epicentre of the quake.
Indonesia's Global TV reported several buildings in Padang, the capital of West Sumatra, had collapsed, while Metro TV reported some buildings had caught fire.
A Reuters witness said residents of Padang fled for higher ground.
"The city is in complete chaos. Everyone is heading to higher ground, I saw one house collapsed to the ground. I'm trying to save my family," said the witness in Padang, the provincial capital of West Sumatra, north of the earthquake's epicentre.
Budi, a police chief in Bengkulu, said on Indonesia's Elshinta radio that he felt a strong quake. "People panicked and tried to save themselves," he said.
He added he heard a report that a three-storey building had collapsed.
AP adds from Jakarta: A massive earthquake shook Indonesia Wednesday, killing seven people, injuring 100 and triggering a small tsunami that hit one city on the island of Sumatra, authorities said. Tsunami warnings were issued for much of the Indian Ocean region.
The 8.2-magnitude quake off Sumatra badly damaged buildings along the coast and could be felt in at least four countries, with tall buildings swaying as far as 1,200 miles away.