Specifically the Sumatran segment is currently experiencing a period of increased activity that began with the catastrophic 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake.

[10] The second earthquake has been linked to dextral (right-lateral) movement on the Great Sumatran fault, which takes up the strike-slip component of the convergence between the two plates.

[14] Local news channel Metro TV reported fires in Padang where residents had run onto the streets as the first quake hit.

The landslide in Gunung Nan Tigo, Padang Pariaman district completely destroyed some villages and caused many fatalities.

[18][19] Padang's Minangkabau International Airport suffered minor damage, with parts of the ceiling in the boarding area falling down.

A man was trapped beneath a flattened hotel for 25 hours with a broken leg before rescue workers pulled him free.

[27] World Vision, Oxfam, IFRC, Muslim Charity and Mercy Corps confirmed that they would fly their emergency response teams to the devastated Padang area for rapid assessment of the catastrophe.

[30]Below is the table of countries that sent or pledged aid for Indonesia[31] A 36-person urban search and rescue team and about 20 Australian Defence Force medics and engineers arrived in Padang on 3 October.

In a statement, Deputy vice-chancellor Prof Dr. Mohd Azrai Kassim said the team of students and staff from the university would help to provide fresh water supplies.

They took specialized equipment including listening devices and camera systems which can penetrate rubble to search for trapped survivors in collapsed buildings.

SARAID (Search and Rescue Assistance in Disasters), a Southwest-based charity, mobilized a team of 10 personnel and sent over a ton of technical equipment to Padang.