Full Answer
How many people died in the 2004 tsunami?
A series of huge waves triggered by an earthquake killed more than 230,000 people in 14 countries. Edie Fassnidge lost both her mother and sister in the tsunami. She and her boyfriend were both injured but survived.
What is the most destructive tsunami in history?
The most destructive tsunami ever recorded occurred on December 26, 2004, after an earthquake displaced the seabed off the coast of Sumatra, Indonesia. More than 200,000 people were killed by a series of waves that flooded coasts from Indonesia to Sri Lanka and even washed ashore on the…. Somalia: Attempts at peace.
How many people died in the Sumatra Tsunami?
The wave killed tens of thousands of people and severely damaged the country’s northern, eastern, and southern coastal areas. The most destructive tsunami ever recorded occurred on December 26, 2004, after an earthquake displaced the seabed off the coast of Sumatra, Indonesia.
Is there a topic profile for 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami?
Scholia has a topic profile for 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami. ^ a b c d "Magnitude 9.1 – Off the West Coast of Sumatra". U.S. Geological Survey.
See more
How many families survived the 2004 tsunami?
Miraculously, all five family members survived. After being swept away, Belón managed to locate her son, Lucas, and grab onto a tree trunk.
How many hours did the 2004 tsunami last?
How long did the Indian Ocean tsunami of 2004 last? The Indian Ocean tsunami of 2004 lasted for seven hours and reached out across the Indian Ocean, devastating coastal areas of Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India, Maldives, and Thailand, and as far away as East Africa.
How many people killed 2004 tsunami?
about 230,000 peopleOn December 26 2004, waves triggered by a massive earthquake slammed into the coastlines of countries ringing the Indian Ocean. The death toll was enormous. Worldwide, it is estimated that about 230,000 people died that day. Aceh province, on the northern end of the Indonesian island of Sumatra, was hit hardest.
Who survived a tsunami?
Rahmat Saiful Bahri survived the Indian Ocean tsunami in 2004 that swept over Indonesia's Aceh province. On 28 September this year, he again found himself at the centre of a disaster - this time in Palu. Interview by Hidayatullah for BBC Indonesian.
What was the tallest tsunami ever?
1958 Lituya Bay earthquake and megatsunamiTsunami / TallestIn fact, the largest tsunami wave ever recorded broke on a cool July night in 1958 and only claimed five lives. A 1,720 foot tsunami towered over Lituya Bay, a quiet fjord in Alaska, after an earthquake rumbled 13 miles away.
What is the biggest tsunami ever?
1958 Lituya Bay earthquake and megatsunamiTsunami / BiggestLituya Bay, Alaska, July 9, 1958 Its over 1,700-foot wave was the largest ever recorded for a tsunami. It inundated five square miles of land and cleared hundreds of thousands of trees.
Did anyone survive the 2004 tsunami?
It's been 10 years since her life-and-death struggle, but tsunami survivor Christine Lang says it's still as fresh in her memory as the day it happened. On Boxing Day, 2004, a 9.1 magnitude megathrust earthquake off the Indonesian coast sent a wall of water racing toward Thailand, Malaysia and Sri Lanka.
Which natural disaster killed the most?
The 1931 Yangtze River floods Excessive rainfall over central China in July and August of 1931 triggered the most deadly natural disaster in world history — the Central China floods of 1931.
How long did it take to recover from the 2004 tsunami?
The results of these efforts are remarkable. Within five years, individuals were back in homes they owned, often on their original land, in communities with new schools and in many cases improved infrastructure.
Can you survive a tsunami on a boat?
Boats are safer from tsunami damage while in the deep ocean ( > 100 m) rather than moored in a harbor. But, do not risk your life and attempt to motor your boat into deep water if it is too close to wave arrival time. Anticipate slowdowns caused by traffic gridlock and hundreds of other boaters heading out to sea.
Can you dive under tsunami?
You can't duck-dive because the entire water column is in motion, not just the top few feet. You can't exit the wave, either, because the trough behind is 100 miles away, and all that water is moving towards you.
Can you swim in a tsunami?
Hang on tight when the wave hits If you are caught up in the wave, you'll face turbulent water filled with rubble. Survival, at this point, is a matter of luck. “A person will be just swept up in it and carried along as debris; there's no swimming out of a tsunami,” Garrison-Laney says.
How fast did the 2004 tsunami hit?
500 mphFast facts: 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami In Banda Aceh, the landmass closest to the quake's epicenter, tsunami waves topped 100 feet. The tsunami's waves traveled across the Indian Ocean at 500 mph, the speed of a jet plane.
How long did it take to recover from the 2004 tsunami?
The results of these efforts are remarkable. Within five years, individuals were back in homes they owned, often on their original land, in communities with new schools and in many cases improved infrastructure.
Is it possible to survive a tsunami?
Most people do not survive being swept into a tsunami. But there are a few ways you can protect yourself from these natural disasters. Your exact strategy will depend on where you are, and will go a lot more smoothly if you have planned in advance.
Why was there no warning for the 2004 tsunami?
A spokesman for the disaster agency said the warning was canceled after the waves made land. Unconfirmed reports also claimed that sirens did not sound in some areas because they were left without power due to the initial earthquake and did not have a secondary source of energy.
What was the magnitude of the earthquake that caused the Indian Ocean tsunami of 2004?
The magnitude of the earthquake that caused the Indian Ocean tsunami of 2004 was 9.1.
What was the location of the earthquake that caused the Indian Ocean tsunami of 2004?
On December 26, 2004, an undersea earthquake struck off the coast of the Indonesian island of Sumatra. This quake caused the Indian Ocean tsunami o...
How long did the Indian Ocean tsunami of 2004 last?
The Indian Ocean tsunami of 2004 lasted for seven hours and reached out across the Indian Ocean, devastating coastal areas of Indonesia, Sri Lanka,...
How many people died in the Indian Ocean tsunami of 2004?
The Indian Ocean tsunami of 2004 killed at least 225,000 people across a dozen countries, with Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India, Maldives, and Thailand...
Which islands were affected by the tsunami?
Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Due to close proximity to the earthquake, the tsunami took just minutes to devastate the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. The Andaman Islands were moderately affected while the island of Little Andaman and the Nicobar Islands were severely affected by the tsunami.
How did the 2004 earthquake affect the ocean?
As well as the sideways movement between the plates, the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake resulted in a rise of the seafloor by several metres, displacing an estimated 30 km 3 (7.2 cu mi) of water and triggering devastating tsunami waves. The waves radiated outwards along the entire 1,600 km (1,000 mi) length of the rupture (acting as a line source ). This greatly increased the geographical area over which the waves were observed, reaching as far as Mexico, Chile, and the Arctic. The raising of the seafloor significantly reduced the capacity of the Indian Ocean, producing a permanent rise in the global sea level by an estimated 0.1 mm (0.004 in).
Why is there no tsunami warning system in the Indian Ocean?
There were no tsunami warning systems in the Indian Ocean to detect tsunamis or to warn the general population living around the ocean. Tsunami detection is not easy because while a tsunami is in deep water, it has little height and a network of sensors is needed to detect it.
How big was the 2004 earthquake?
The 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake was unusually large in geographical and geological extent. An estimated 1,600 km (1,000 mi) of fault surface slipped (or ruptured) about 15 m (50 ft) along the subduction zone where the Indian Plate slides (or subducts) under the overriding Burma Plate. The slip did not happen instantaneously but took place in two phases over several minutes: Seismographic and acoustic data indicate that the first phase involved a rupture about 400 km (250 mi) long and 100 km (60 mi) wide, 30 km (19 mi) beneath the sea bed—the largest rupture ever known to have been caused by an earthquake. The rupture proceeded at about 2.8 km/s (1.7 mi/s; 10,000 km/h; 6,300 mph), beginning off the coast of Aceh and proceeding north-westerly over about 100 seconds. After a pause of about another 100 seconds, the rupture continued northwards towards the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. The northern rupture occurred more slowly than in the south, at about 2.1 km/s (1.3 mi/s; 7,600 km/h; 4,700 mph), continuing north for another five minutes to a plate boundary where the fault type changes from subduction to strike-slip (the two plates slide past one another in opposite directions).
Why are tsunamis more common in the Pacific Ocean than in other oceans?
Tsunamis are more frequent in the Pacific Ocean than in other oceans because of earthquakes in the "Ring of Fire". Although the extreme western edge of the Ring of Fire extends into the Indian Ocean (the point where the earthquake struck), no warning system exists in that ocean. Tsunamis there are relatively rare despite earthquakes being relatively frequent in Indonesia. The last major tsunami was caused by the 1883 eruption of Krakatoa. Not every earthquake produces large tsunamis: on 28 March 2005, a magnitude 8.7 earthquake hit roughly the same area of the Indian Ocean but did not result in a major tsunami.
What was the magnitude of the 2004 earthquake?
In February 2005, scientists revised the estimate of the magnitude to 9.0. Although the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center has accepted these new numbers, the United States Geological Survey has so far not changed its estimate of 9.1. A 2006 study estimated a magnitude of Mw 9.1–9.3; Hiroo Kanamori of the California Institute of Technology estimates that M w 9.2 is representative of the earthquake's size.
How did the Burma earthquake happen?
The earthquake was caused by a rupture along the fault between the Burma Plate and the Indian Plate . A series of massive tsunami waves grew up to 30 m (100 ft) high once heading inland, after being created by the underwater seismic activity offshore.
How many people died in the Boxing Day tsunami?
Ten years ago the Indian Ocean tsunami struck on Boxing Day. A series of huge waves triggered by an earthquake killed more than 230,000 people in 14 countries. Edie Fassnidge lost both her mother and sister in the tsunami. She and her boyfriend were both injured but survived.
How many people died in the Aceh earthquake?
Triggered by 8.9 magnitude earthquake near Aceh, north Indonesia, at 07:59 local time (00:59 GMT) Affected 14 countries. Nearly quarter of a million people died. Two million left homeless. When she died, Alice, who grew up in the Yorkshire Dales, was studying to be a music teacher at Goldsmiths College in London.
How long has it been since the Banda Aceh tsunami?
A decade has passed since a tsunami devastated Banda Aceh, Indonesia. See photos from the initial disaster and its aftermath and the region's recovery 10 years later.
How many people died in Indonesia?
More than 170,000 people died in Indonesia alone, more than three-quarters of the total death toll. Indonesian Vice President Jusuf Kalla led a prayer ceremony in Banda Aceh, the capital of Aceh province, on Friday.
How many people died in the Thailand tsunami?
Many stories. There are just so many stories here, more than a week after the devastating tsunami that killed at least 5,000 people in Thailand — and more than 140,000 across Southeast Asia.
How old was Isabelle when she saw the waves?
Twelve-year-old Isabelle, another visitor from Sweden, described the scene as the waves came crashing onto the Thai beaches. She said she had been afraid of sharks. But that fear faded as she was sucked into the sea. She said she didn’t panic, and she was looking around for someone to help her up.
Do older kids internalize trauma?
It’s the older kids who end up internalizing the trauma. Sometimes, according to the psychologists, it’s just about unloading emotions. The more the survivors talk, the more they get it out.
Did Michael Bergman save his son?
Michael Bergman was incredibly moved, saying that the princess not only saved his son, but saved his own soul. Because, by giving him back his son, she saved that part of him, too.
Overview
Tsunami
The sudden vertical rise of the seabed by several metres during the earthquake displaced massive volumes of water, resulting in a tsunami that struck the coasts of the Indian Ocean. A tsunami that causes damage far away from its source is sometimes called a teletsunami and is much more likely to be produced by the vertical motion of the seabed than by horizontal motion.
The tsunami, like all others, behaved differently in deep water than in shallow water. In deep oce…
Earthquake
The 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake was initially documented as having a moment magnitude of 8.8. In February 2005, scientists revised the estimate of the magnitude to 9.0. Although the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center has accepted these new numbers, the United States Geological Survey has so far not changed its estimate of 9.1. A 2006 study estimated a magnitude of Mw 9.1–9.3; Hiroo …
Impact
According to the U.S. Geological Survey, a total of 227,898 people died. Measured in lives lost, this is one of the ten worst earthquakes in recorded history, as well as the single worst tsunami in history. Indonesia was the worst affected area, with most death toll estimates at around 170,000. An initial report by Siti Fadilah Supari, the Indonesian Minister of Health at the time, estimated t…
Humanitarian response
A great deal of humanitarian aid was needed because of widespread damage to the infrastructure, shortages of food and water, and economic damage. Epidemics were of particular concern due to the high population density and tropical climate of the affected areas. The main concern of humanitarian and government agencies was to provide sanitation facilities and fresh drinking wa…
In popular culture
• Children of Tsunami: No More Tears (2005), a 24-minute documentary
• The Wave That Shook The World (2005), educational television-series documentary about the tsunami
• Tsunami: The Aftermath (2006), a two-part television miniseries about its aftermath
See also
• Deaths in December 2004 – notable people killed in the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami
• List of earthquakes in 2004
• List of earthquakes in Indonesia
• List of natural disasters by death toll
External links
• ReliefWeb's main page for this event.
• The Sumatra-Andaman Islands Earthquake – IRIS Consortium
• M9.1 Sumatra-Andaman Earthquake & Tsunami, 2004 – Amateur Seismic Centre (ASC)