Indonesia issued a tsunami warning after an 8.7 magnitude earthquake hit waters off the western-most Aceh province.
Tremors were felt in Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia and India, with one tweet reporting that high-rise flats in Malaysia shook for at least a minute.
The Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre in Hawaii said a tsunami watch was in effect for Indonesia, India, Sri Lanka, Australia, Myanmar, Thailand, the Maldives and other Indian Ocean islands, Malaysia, Pakistan, Somalia, Oman, Iran, Bangladesh, Kenya, South Africa and Singapore.
A tsunami watch means there is the potential for a tsunami, not that one is imminent.
Click here to see where the earthquake took place in relation to the devastating 9.1 quake that caused the tsunami in December 2004.
The US Geological Survey said the powerful quake was centred 33km beneath the ocean floor around 495km from Aceh’s provincial capital.
Indonesia straddles a series of fault lines that makes the vast island nation prone to volcanic and seismic activity.