BANDA ACEH, Indonesia — A tsunami watch was issued for countries across the Indian Ocean after an 8.7-magnitude earthquake hit waters off Indonesia on Wednesday, triggering widespread panic as residents along coastlines fled to high ground in cars and on the backs of motorcycles.
Some were crying. Others screamed “God as great” as they poured from their homes.
The U.S. Geological Survey said the quake was centered 20 miles (33 kilometers) beneath the ocean floor around 269 miles (434 kilometers) from Aceh’s provincial capital.
The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Hawaii said a tsunami watch was in effect for Indonesia, India, Sri Lanka, Australia, Myanmar, Thailand, the Maldives and other Indian Ocean islands, Malaysia, Pakistan, Somalia, Oman, Iran, Bangladesh, Kenya, South Africa and Singapore.
A tsunami watch means there is the potential for a tsunami, not that one is imminent.
Said, an official at Indonesia’s Meteorology and Geophysics Agency who goes by only one name, said a tsunami warning has been issued for cities all along the coast of Sumatra island.
There was chaos in the streets, with fierce shaking continuing for nearly four minutes.
“I was in the shower on the fifth floor of my hotel,” Timbang Pangaribuan told El Shinta radio from the city of Medan. “We all ran out. ... We’re all standing outside now.”
He said one guest was injured when he jumped from the window of his room.
The tremor was felt in Singapore, Thailand, Bangladesh, Malaysia and India. High-rise apartments and offices on Malaysia’s west coast shook for at least a minute.
Thailand’s National Disaster Warning Center issued an evacuation order to residents in six provinces along the country’s west coast, including the popular tourist destinations of Phuket, Krabi and Phang-Nga.
Indonesia straddles a series of fault lines that makes the vast island nation prone to volcanic and seismic activity.
A giant 9.1-magnitude quake off the country on Dec. 26, 2004, triggered a tsunami in the Indian Ocean that killed 230,000 people, nearly three quarter of them in Aceh.
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No skin det sol e høgste Svealiå
No bli det vår, det kjenne e so vel
De søng så trongt kring alle dalasiå
å synnåvinn han kjem å gjer me sel.
Når sommarn kjem, da bli det fint e fjellå,
da ska e dit å hør kår bekkjinn søng,
å kliv te topps e brattast berjestellå
å vea tort å tåg å tåbærløng.
E kjenne lokt tå gras kring alle haua,
å sola skin, å bjøllåin kling så kløkt.
Å tjønninn legg så blank der e ska laua
me berg ekreng, der e kainn sol me trøkt.
Ådu, å du, kår sårt å sælt e stoinna,
når sola skin frå kvite høgdå ne.
Da væt e vår’n han e kje lenger oinna
at e får levva slik ein somar te.
Da væt e vesst at bekkjinn legg å venta
poinn kalle isa me så sval ein drekk.
- Når hausten kjem å sistkveldskløva henta,
da ska e takk for sommarn så e fekk.
Words : Hans Hyldbakk / Music : Henning Sommero
50 sen - Sulur Kacang
The ‘sulur kacang’ (pea tendrils) motif featured on the new 50 sen coin is popular among traditional woodcarvers and silversmiths.
20 sen - Bunga Melur
The ‘bunga melur’ or jasmine flower is culturally significant among the three major races in Malaysia.
10 sen - Orang Asli Motif
The ‘orang asli’ (aboriginal tribes) of Malaysia are talented in weaving indigenous leaves and plants into decorative items such as headbands, sashes and skirts for traditional rituals and ceremonies.
5 sen - Destar Siga
The ‘destar siga’ cloth is an indigenous form of fabric weaving that originates from the Kadazan Dusun tribe in Sabah.
******************note******************
I have a very small accumulation of coins that I have acquired in my travels. They can be very challenging to identify but the fun is in the trying. They can be very inexpensive or even free.
