 Previous estimates of the tsunami hazard for the Java coastline may have minimized the risk to the area, and to the northwest along the Sumatran coast, the risk is substantially higher for tsunami, especially near Padang.Previous events along the coast of Java in 1921 and again in 1994 illustrate the need for an accurate assessment of the threat.The July 2006 earthquake had an unusually slow rupture velocity which resulted in minor shaking on land for around three minutes, but the intensity was very light relative to the size of the tsunami that followed.