Tsunami alert: Indians warned by high commission in Phuket

All Indians staying in Thailand's Phuket island have been alerted by the Indian High Commission in Bangkok following the massive earthquake of 8.5 magnitude that hit waters off Indonesia triggering tsunami fears across the Indian Ocean nations.

"The high commission is closely watching the situation and all Indians staying in Phuket have been alerted," high commission sources said.

Official spokesperson in the ministry of external affairs in New Delhi said that the ministry is in touch with Indian missions in the region.

Indian embassy in Jakarta, Indonesia has said there was no reports of any loss of life.

Control rooms were being set up by Indian Mission in Jakarta in addition to Consulate in Medan, sources said.

They also said that RIMES (Regional Integrated Multi-Hazard Early Warning System for Africa and Asia) indicated that only 36 cm wave will hit the Indian coast, contrary to some alarmist projections of 6 metres.

The quake struck off Indonesia's Sumatra island, US and Indonesian monitors reported, prompting an Indian Ocean-wide tsunami alert.

The tremors were felt far and wide in southern and eastern parts of India, Sri Lanka, Australia, Thailand, Singapore and Malaysia. The quake's magnitude was 8.5 on Richter scale and it struck 431-kilometres off the Indonesian city of Banda Aceh.

In India, tremors were felt in Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka, Andaman and Nicobar islands, Assam and West Bengal.