COLOMBO, March 29 (Xinhuanet) -- The Sri Lankan government withdrew its tsunami alert Tuesday morning and people fled their homes in the coast lines began to return.

    In withdrawing its tsunami warning, Meteorological Department said it was safe for residents in the coastal area to return to their homes as there were no reports of unusual wave activity anywhere in the country or neighboring countries within the Indian Ocean.

    As a precautionary measure to avoid a possible tsunami from a 8.5 Richter Scale earthquake near Sumatra, the Sri Lankan government issued a tsunami alert late Monday, urging residents in the coastal area to evacuate to higher grounds.

    A strong earthquake near Indonesia on Dec. 26 last year triggered tsunami and killed some 31,000 people in Sri Lanka and left nearly 1 million homeless. Enditem