If you’re in the Aceh region of Indonesia right now, run for the bloody hills!

An earthquake with an initial magnitude of 8.9 struck under the sea off Indonesia’s northern Aceh province near the island of Sumatra this morning. The quake triggered a tsunami warning across the Indian Ocean region. The tremor was felt as far away as Singapore, Thailand and India.

The US Geological Survey (USGS), which documents quakes worldwide, said the Aceh quake was centred 33km under the sea about 495km from Banda Aceh, the provincial capital. It was initially reported as 8.9 magnitude but was later revised down to 8.7 by the USGS.

Reuters reports that people in the region were making their way to higher ground, while reporters in Jakarta reported shaking buildings this morning. Indonesia sits on the so-called “Pacific Ring of Fire”, a region of intense seismic activity that is regularly hit by earthquakes.

A giant 9.1 magnitude quake off the country in December 2004 triggered a tsunami in the Indian Ocean that killed 230 000 people, 170 000 of them in Aceh.

[Source: News 24, BBC News]