2005 Sumatra earthquake

The 2005 Sumatra earthquake, referred to as the Nias Earthquake by the scientific community, was a major earthquake on 28 March 2005, located off the west coast of northern Sumatra, Indonesia. Approximately 1,300 people were killed by the earthquake, mostly on the island of Nias. The event caused panic in the region, which had previously been devastated by the massive tsunami triggered by the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake, but this earthquake generated a relatively tiny tsunami that caused limited damage.

The earthquake occurred at 16:09:36 UTC (11:09:36 P.M. local time) on March 28, 2005. The hypocenter was located at 2°04′35″N, 97°00′58″E, 30 km (18.6 miles) below the surface of the Indian Ocean, where subduction is forcing the Indo-Australian Plate to the south-west under the Eurasian plate Sunda edge. The area is 200 km west of Sibolga, Sumatra, or 1,400 km northwest of Jakarta, roughly halfway between the islands of Nias and Simeulue. Seismic recordings give the earthquake a magnitude of about 8.7, and effects were felt as far away as Bangkok, Thailand, a distance of 1,000 km .