This is the third most powerful earthquake since 1965 in Indonesia; however, scientists were surprised by its small tsunami. The Nias–Simeulue earthquake occurred at 04:48 WIB (UTC+7) on 28 March 2005. The event triggered a tsunami with waves up to 2 meters over beaches on the west coast of northern Sumatra, although damage was minimal as the waves struck before high tide. Tsunami warnings were issued, although they were discontinued after an inspection of sea level readings.

This was a magnitude 8.6 magnitude earthquake that struck off the west coast of northern Sumatra with a hypocenter 30 km deep. Effects were felt as far away as Bangkok, Thailand over 1,000 kilometres (620 mi) away and across the Indian Ocean on the Cocos Islands. 

 At least 915 people were killed, mostly on the island of Nias. The event caused panic in the region, which had already been devastated by the massive tsunami triggered by the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake.