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Chennai's famed Marina Beach was evacuated on Sunday after a 7.4 magnitude earthquake struck Indonesia. In its wake, the Tamil Nadu Government has issued a tsunami alert. All shopkeepers on the beach have been asked vacate the area. "We have advised people to close down their shops and they are cooperating with us," said T. S Anbu, Deputy Commissioner of Police, Triplicane Range, Chennai. Tourists said they were glad about the preventive advisory being issued. "The police has taken charge of Marina Beach. The management is doing a great work, I am very happy to see this," said Guddu, a tourist. Bus routes have been diverted along the Marina Beach route. Around 500 police and Home Guards personnel have been deployed on Marina Beach to stop people from visiting the beach. On December 26, 2004, a giant tsunami waves, triggered off by a powerful earthquake killed over 230,000 people across Asia and Africa. India was among the most severely hit by the tsunami, with a death toll of over 7,400 in southern Tamil Nadu alone. The tsunami also left over 1.8 million families homeless across Asia.

Tamil Nadu issues tsunami warning