Scenes from Aceh as magnitude 8.6 quake strikes off the coast of Sumatra, triggering an Indian Ocean-wide tsunami alert

A massive 8.6-magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of Indonesia's Sumatra island on Wednesday, triggering an Indian Ocean-wide tsunami alert and evacuation orders across Asia.

The quake was reported to have struck 431 kilometres off the Indonesian city of Banda Aceh as panicked residents grabbed their families and fled for higher ground. This was followed by a major 8.2-magnitude aftershock.

Tremors were felt as far afield as Thailand, where skyscrapers in the capital Bangkok swayed. In Singapore, residents in several parts of the island-state also expereinced tremors, while India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Myanmar all issued alerts or evacuation orders.

Scroll through the gallery to see the scenes that unfolded in the Indonesian city of Banda Aceh, the cityclosest to the epicentre of the earthquake