Gulf states warned of Tsunami

Gulf nations have been warned over the possibility of a "destructive" Tsunami later today following a major earthquake in the Indian Ocean off the coast of Indonesia. A statement issued by the Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre (PTWC) named the UAE, Oman and Yemen among the countries that could be impacted this evening if a Tsunami does result from the earthquake. The 8.7 magnitude earthquake occurred off the coast of Northern Sumatra just before 9am this morning. According to data released by the PTCW, the Tsunami will hit Omani capital Muscat at 15:40, Fujairah in the UAE at 16:21 and Yemeni port Aden at 17:26. “Earthquakes of this size have the potential to generate a widespread destructive Tsunami that can affect coastlines across the entire Indian Ocean basin,” a statement from PTWC read. The PTWC clarified that it was not certain that the earthquake would cause a Tsunami. The statement added that the bulletin was only issued as advice to government agencies, and individual responses were up to national and local government agencies. The UAE's National Centre of Meteorology and Seismology did not immediately respond to Arabian Business's request for comment.