8.2 Magnitude Scale Earthquake Shakes Aceh

Aceh, Acehkita Earthquake of an 8.2 Magnitude scale returns to shake Aceh and the North Sumatera. The Aceh people are reported to be in a state of panic and nervous that there will be a repeat of the December 26 tsunami incident.

Until this news comes down, communication to Aceh remains confidential. Acehkita tried contacting the Meteorological and Geophysical Body of Banda Aceh but couldn�t be connected as all communication has been cut. In conjunction, the US Geological Survey Group reports the quake happened at 23:10PM. According to the readings, the quake happened at a distance of 205KM off the Sibolga shores, Northern Sumatera at a depth of 30KM below sea level.

Our contributor in Aceh at Banda Aceh reports, during the earthquake for 5 minutes, it caused an outstanding panic situation. Electric power was out. People were running aimlessly in the darkness of night. Some people were running out of their homes with valuables. �I�m really afraid of another tsunami like the past December,� said one person.

Because of that, some people are busy seeking higher territorial ground like Blang Bintang, in Aceh besar, roughly 35KM from the center of Banda Aceh.

At Peuniti, Banda Aceh, some people are loading valuables from their house onto vehicles to move then to higher territories. At Beurawe, people are running in the direction of the mosque. Prayers chants can be heard from mosques. The panic situation has caused a massive traffic jam on the bridge of Simpang Surabaya.

Bireuen is also in a state of panic. The Polsek and Koramil members are working to calming the public that have brought out valuables from their homes. After hearing the orders, people have shifted their valuables back into their homes. But the public still prefers to anxiously stay outside their houses.

Minutes after the earthquake, our Acehkita contributor at Bireuen just arrived at the Kuta Blang beach to observe the ocean calming.

In the meantime, at Lhokseumawe, people living in the villages (Pusong Baro, Pusong Lama and Ujong Blang) near the beach are running towards Kandang and Panggoi. Our Acehkita contributor at Lhokseumawe reports, TNI are in time to prevent people from fleeing to outside the city. An earthquake also happened at Pidie.

Mukhtar, a Lhokseumawe citizen said that he managed to flee with his family just in time without reason. �What�s important is to be far away from the ocean in anticipating if another tsunami occurs,� he said.

Translated From: AcehKita.com