Massive aftershocks shake Indonesia

Huge aftershocks rumbled across Indonesia's Sumatra island today as rescue teams sped to the area after a massive 8.4-magnitude earthquake killed at least six people.

The follow-on shocks, including one as strong as magnitude 7.8, drew new tsunami warnings from Indonesian authorities, and panicked thousands of people who had already spent the night outdoors afraid of being buried alive.

The quake was strong enough to shake buildings in Thailand and Malaysia, and set off a tsunami alert as far away as eastern Africa - raising memories of the December 2004 tsunami catastrophe that killed 2,20,000 people.

Updated at 0915 hrs: The central government on Thursday asked the Andaman and Nicobar Islands administration to monitor the situation in view of a fresh earthquake, measuring 7.8 on the Richter scale, in Indonesia.

The island authorities have been asked to 'keep watch' on the situation, a home ministry spokesman said, adding that no alert has been issued.

A tsunami alert was issued on Wednesday to Andaman and Nicobar islands after a powerful earthquake of 7.9 magnitude hit Indonesia last evening, but withdrawn after three hours when it appeared that there was no imminent threat. (PTI)