A magnitude 8.7 earthquake has been detected off the coast of Indonesia, leading to a lot of concern over tsunamis and a test of preparedness.

From Mashable:

According to the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Hawaii, a tsunami watch was issued for Indonesia, India, Sri Lanka, Australia, Myanmar, Thailand, Maldives, United Kingdom, Malaysia, Mauritius, Reunion, Seychelles, Pakistan, Somalia, Oman, Madagascar, Iran, Uae, Yemen, Comores, Bangladesh, Tanzania, Mozambique, Kenya, Crozet Islands, Kerguelen Islands, South Africa and Singapore.

Not to turn this into a tech story but, in part, it is one. Now we find out how good cell and data networks are in this part of the world. And we see how very different cultures and economies send warning messages, hopefully for something that doesn’t prove to be as disastrous as similar quake/tsunamis in recent years. How effective will Twitter and Facebook be? How will things be different in Australia than in Iran?