Malaysia Boleh!! - Tsunami alert draws crowds to beach

Scores of curious Malaysians rushed to the beach to see a possible tsunami, despite a warning to stay away after a massive earthquake hit neighbouring Indonesia.

A photo in The Star, a local newspaper, on Thursday showed a large number of people standing along a promenade in the northern resort island of Penang, apparently waiting to witness a tsunami. The report prompted a minister yesterday to urge people to stay away from the beach.

When they tell people to move away from the shore, some people purposely go to the shore to have a look. This is something that the people should not be doing.

The promenade was one of the areas struck by the December 2004 tsunami when 3m-high waves pounded the wall. A total of 68 people were killed in Malaysia, most of them on the island of Penang.

Police criticised the onlookers for staying on after the tsunami alert was issued to the coastal states of Penang, Kedah and Perak soon after the 8.4-magnitude quake struck off the west coast of Sumatra island on Wednesday.

A tsunami never materialised, but if a tsunami had really hit that night, those who lingered on could have been seriously injured or even lost their lives. The local police chief advised them to heed their warning & stay away when there's a tsunami alert issued.