A huge earthquake shook western Indonesia for the second day in a row today, triggering tsunami alerts around the region.
This morning's jolt and the aftershocks were felt as far as Malaysia and Singapore.
At least nine people were killed and 49 injured in the twin tremors, which caused tall buildings to sway in at least three countries.
Rafael Abreu, a geologist with the US Geological Survey (USGS), said the magnitude-7.8 quake did not appear to be an aftershock of yesterday's 8.4-magnitude tremor.
The tremor was centred 115 miles south-east of Padang in Sumatra, the island ravaged by the 2004 tsunami disaster that killed an estimated 230,000 people in a dozen nations, the USGS said.
It was six miles deep and triggered several strong aftershocks that sent thousands of frightened people fleeing or seeking shelter on higher ground.
The Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre in Hawaii warned today's quake had the potential to generate destructive waves within 600 miles of the epicentre. It advised authorities to take immediate action to evacuate coastal areas.
Nations as far away as Africa put coastal areas on alert after yesterday's tremor.
Sensitive to the 2004 tsunami disaster, governments in Kenya and Tanzania in East Africa told people to leave beaches. People in Mombasa, Kenya, crowded into buses after hearing the warning over the radio.
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