Magnitude 9.0 Earthquake - OFF THE WEST COAST OF NORTHERN SUMATRA

USGS Earthquake Hazards ^ | 2004 December 26 00:58:55 UTC

[bd476]

Magnitude 8.1 - OFF THE WEST COAST OF NORTHERN SUMATRA
2004 December 26 00:58:55 UTC

Preliminary Earthquake Report
West Coast and Alaska Tsunami Warning Center/NOAA/NWS

A great earthquake occurred at 00:58:55 (UTC) on Sunday, December 26, 2004. The magnitude 8.1 event has been located OFF THE WEST COAST OF NORTHERN SUMATRA. (This event has been reviewed by a seismologist.)

Magnitude	8.1
Date-Time	Sunday, December 26, 2004 at 00:58:55 (UTC) = Coordinated Universal Time Sunday, December 26, 2004 at 6:58:55 AM = local time at epicenter
Location	3.400°N, 95.700°E
Depth	40 km (24.9 miles) set by location program
Region	OFF THE WEST COAST OF NORTHERN SUMATRA
Distances	235 km (145 miles) S of Banda Aceh, Sumatra, Indonesia 330 km (205 miles) W of Medan, Sumatra, Indonesia 1620 km (1000 miles) NW of JAKARTA, Java, Indonesia 3405 km (2120 miles) SE of NEW DELHI, Delhi, India
Location Uncertainty	Error estimate not available
Parameters	Nst=020, Nph=020, Dmin=>999 km, Rmss=0.98 sec, Gp=101°, M-type=moment magnitude (Mw), Version=1
Source	West Coast and Alaska Tsunami Warning Center/NOAA/NWS
Event ID	at00000264

Location Maps: 10-degree NEIC Maps Did you feel it? Report shaking and damage at your location. You can also view a map displaying accumulated data from your report and others. Historical Moment Tensor Solutions Seismic Hazard Map Historical Seismicity Theoretical P-Wave Travel Times Magnitude 7 and Greater Earthquakes This Year TsunamiBulletin Archive of newsworthy events

[Central Scrutiniser]

It wasn't christmas over there, int'l date line, it was the 26th.

[Quix]

Is moment magnitude what's listed with the USGS email listings?

THX.

[radiohead]

I had almost forgotten about a Sri Lankan family we knew years ago when my son was in kindergarten. We were all living in married student housing at a university. Their child was a bit younger and had been born w/part of his arm missing below the elbow.

They were practically beside themselves that we let our son play with theirs. Why wouldn't we? But apparently at home, the boy was a bit of an outcast due to his disability. Eventually, the child was fitted for a prosthetic arm, which was no big deal here in the states, but was something the parents couldn't get in Sri Lanka, even tho they came from well to do people.

[Quix]

I'm always torn on that issue.

For some, you are undoubtedly right.

Not sure what to add. Doubt my formatting will change drastically. Not sure I can explain why. I normally prefer to be practical and maximumally effective. But the only peace I have is to . . . . essentially . . . be me.

[Quix]

Evidently, your study of the quality of the documents--which we have from at least within 30-40 years of the events--evidently your study of the quality of the historic documents is extremely lacking.

Josh McDowell and others could be of great help to you IF you really were interested in truth.

[Quix]

CERTAINLY.

[ghostrider]

When I was a baby, shortly after WWII, my Dad was stationed in Hawaii. Mom tells me that we were on the beach when the tide went way out. She could see the bottom where water had always been. Being a new mom and naturally cautious, she fled from this disruption in the "continum." Thankfully, she did. A tidal wave soon roared over the beach.

[Quix]

God will certainly take care of all who are abidingly and persistently in rebellion against Him.

And, He WILL TAKE CARE OF in a very different way, those with authetnic hearts to know and abide WITH HIM.

[stlnative]

INDONESIA

Epicentre of earthquake off the western island of Sumatra

Dozens of buildings destroyed in the initial quake before a huge wall of water, up to 10m high in places, hit the provinces of Aceh and North Sumatra

Coastal towns and villages, and the resort island of Nias, swamped

---

SRI LANKA

Wide stretch of the eastern coastline - from Jaffna in the north to the popular tourist beaches in the south - devastated

Districts of Muttur and Trincomalee reportedly inundated by waves as high as 6m

Port in the capital, Colombo, shut by flash floods

More than a million people have been forced from their homes, officials say

---

INDIA

More than 2000km (1243 miles) of southern coast swamped by tidal waves, including states of Tamil Nadu - whose capital, Madras, was particularly badly hit - Andhra Pradesh, and Kerala, as well as federally administered territory of Pondicherry

Vast swathes of countryside submerged

Heavy damage is also reported in the Andaman and Nicobar islands

---

THAILAND

Western coast of southern Thailand badly affected, including Phuket and Phi Phi islands and mainland resorts of Krabi and Phang Nga.

---

MALDIVES

High waves and floods inundate islands

Large areas of the capital, Male, left under water and some low lying islands abandoned

Some of the country's 200 islands cannot be contacted

---

MALAYSIA

People reported to have been swept away from beaches near the northern island of Penang and others are said to have died in Kedah state

---

SOMALIA

Northern Somali coastline, more than 6,000 km (3,728 miles) from the epicentre, is reported affected

Wave hits town of Garacad in central Somalia, reportedly drowning several people and capsizing fishing boats

---

BURMA

The south-eastern coast is reported to have been struck by a huge wave

[Quix]

BTW, I assure you, you have less than a 0.00000000000001% clue about me.

[Quix]

CERTAINLY.

[oceanperch]

What a nightmare.....I wouldn't think you could outrun a tsunami that comes without a warning system in place.

We have a plan of action here in Newport Oregon but if it ever needed to be put in place for real it scares me that the County would screw it up. Past history.

North from us in Tillamook they have sirens to let residents know to head to higher ground.

I live on the Bay at the mouth of the Pacific, literally and we have had two felt quakes off the coast in the last six months.

I have been here 15 yrs and no quakes, left Cali to come up here after the Bay Area quake in '89.

Now we have quakes offshore 200miles + all the time and no bigger than 4.0.

Scary stuff. I was shaken mentally after the two here that were small so I cannot fathom the mental anxiety and suffering of those in the Indian Ocean Christmas quake.

[Quix]

I do appreciate your posting the eyewitness doc.

[Quix]

As I recall, the moral issues were the very basic sorts that 99% of all cultures agree on.

[Strategerist]

Thing is in Oregon it's a relatively short distance to higher ground.

Even a truly huge tsunami is going to be lower than the altitude a normal person can walk to in a fairly brief period of time.

For the most likely source of a tsunami (Alaska) you're going to have several hours of warning; even if some horrible traffic jam develops you should be able to walk inland far enough to get 100+ feet above sea level.

Of course, a huge Cascadia quake is another problem. The waves will be onshore quite quickly. Still, if you start heading inland when you FEEL a big quake (don't wait for tsunami warning) you still should be able to escape a tsunami by simply walking.

The thing to keep in mind is that if you get stuck in some sort of evacuation traffic jam in a car is to abandon the car and walk if you have to.

[oceanperch]

what exactly happens in seafloor displacment?

The media and here on FR the term keeps coming up but I don't understand it.

[bperiwinkle7]

Has anyone heard from expatguy in a while?

[oceanperch]

what exactly happens in seafloor displacment?

The media and here on FR the term keeps coming up but I don't understand it.

[expatguy]

Just got off the phone with Phuket now is 3:28 AM there - Entire beach area upto KFC on Bangla road is off limits - Army has moved in and has threatened to shoot looters. Bodies are still being found. Death toll expected to rise much higher.

An American Expat in Southeast Asia