At about 2:30 p.m. an earthquake hit Chennai, Tamil Nadu. According to reports, an 8.7-8.9 magnitude earthquake struck off the cost of Northern Sumatra.

According to the Director of Disaster Management in Port Blair, there is a tsunami alert in affect for coastal India including Chennai  and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

 SEA LEVEL READINGS CONFIRM THAT A TSUNAMI HAS BEEN GENERATED WHICH COULD CAUSE WIDESPREAD DAMAGE. A TSUNAMI IS A SERIES OF WAVES AND THE FIRST WAVE MAY NOT BE THE LARGEST. TSUNAMI WAVE HEIGHTS CANNOT BE PREDICTED AND CAN VARYSIGNIFICANTLY ALONG A COAST DUE TO LOCAL EFFECTS. THE TIME FROM  ONE TSUNAMI WAVE TO THE NEXT CAN BE FIVE MINUTES TO AN HOUR, ANDTHE THREAT CAN CONTINUE FOR MANY HOURS AS MULTIPLE WAVES ARRIVE.   DANGER TO BOATS AND COASTAL STRUCTURES CAN CONTINUE FOR SEVERAL HOURS DUE TO RAPID CURRENTS. AS LOCAL CONDITIONS CAN CAUSE A WIDE VARIATION IN TSUNAMI WAVE ACTION THE  ALL CLEAR DETERMINATION MUST BE MADE BY LOCAL AUTHORITIES. ESTIMATED INITIAL TSUNAMI WAVE ARRIVAL TIMES AT FORECAST POINTS WITHIN THE WARNING AND WATCH AREAS ARE GIVEN BELOW. ACTUAL ARRIVAL TIMES MAY DIFFER AND THE INITIAL WAVE MAY NOT BE THE LARGEST.

Go to the following link for the most up to date information regarding landfall timings.

Pacific Tsunami Warning Center

We remind U.S. citizens to exercise prudence and continue to take active, personal responsibility for their security.  We strongly suggest that monitor news reports, and follow the instructions of Indian authorities.  U.S. citizens living and traveling in India are urged to enroll in the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program and update their contact information with the U.S. Consulate Hyderabad.

Registration facilitates the U.S. Mission’s contact with U.S. citizens in emergencies.  Information on registering can be found at the U.S. Department of State’s Consular Affairs website at http://travelregistration.state.gov and at the Consulate’s website chennai.usconsulate.gov.

For the latest security information, U.S. citizens living and traveling abroad should regularly monitor the Department of State’s Consular Affairs website at http://travel.state.gov, where the current Worldwide Caution, Travel Alerts, Travel Warnings and health-information resources can be found. 

Up-to-date information on security can also be obtained by calling 1-888-407-4747 toll free in the U.S. and Canada, or, for callers outside the U.S. and Canada, a regular toll line at 1-202-501-4444.  These numbers are available from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Eastern Time, Monday through Friday (except U.S. federal holidays).