[Philippine Daily Inquirer] The Philippine Embassy in Jakarta said that from the information they got as of Wednesday morning, no Filipinos were affected by the tsunami and a 7.7-magnitude earthquake which struck off the coast of Sumatra Tuesday.

In a dispatch to the Department of Foreign Affairs in Manila, the embassy said it continues to coordinate with local authorities in the affected areas, as well as the Filipino community in Indonesia, and stands ready to provide assistance, if needed.

Sumatra, the sixth-largest island in the world, has a population of about 50 million.

The embassy added that Filipinos mostly reside in the Jakarta metropolitan region and in the main island of Java. Most of them work as engineers, managers, supervisors and teachers, among other occupations.

Foreign Secretary Alberto Romulo has also directed the DFA to prepare for a possible humanitarian team to assist in rescue and rehabilitation efforts in Indonesia.

Romulo issued the directive from Hanoi, Vietnam, where he is accompanying President Aquino on a state visit to Vietnam and attendance at the 17th Association of Southeast Asian Nations Summit.

A 10-meter-high tsunami struck Sumatra and its surrounding islands after the strong earthquake. More than 100 people have been reported dead and 500 still missing, as rescue teams work double time to reach the islands and assist affected villagers.

Hundreds of wooden and bamboo homes were washed away on the island of Pagai, with water flooding crops and roads up to 550 meters inland. In Muntei Baru, a village on Silabu island, 80 percent of the houses were badly damaged.

Those and other islets hit were part of the Mentawai island chain, a popular and laidback surfing spot 280 kilometers from Sumatra.