Andaman Islands brace for 4-metre tsunami waves

New Delhi: A few thousand people were evacuated to higher ground from parts of India’s Andaman and Nicobar islands on Wednesday following earthquakes in Indonesia, as the islands prepared for tsunami waves up to 3.9 metres high, officials said.

“There could be high waves of 1.5 metres at Port Blair and 3.9 metres at Campbell Bay,” said Prabhakar Rao, the official in charge of the disaster control room at Port Blair, the main town on the islands.

Small waves about half-a-metre high and within normal tide limits had already washed into the Campbell Bay area on the Great Nicobar island, the official said.

“We have evacuated people from low lying areas of Campbell Bay islands and we have also alerted them as there is a report that high waves may hit Indira Point area,” south Andaman region police superintendent S.B.S. Tyagi said.