No one will ever know how many died in the 2004 Tsunami because so many of the towns and villages affected were in remote areas with few records of population. It is possible that more than 200,000 were drowned or buried in mud in just a few minutes. The worst affected areas were close to the earthquake epicentre, but the wave caused destruction as far away as India and Africa (East Coast).
Could Tsunami deaths have been prevented?
Many scientists had been warning of the risks of a severe Tsunami in the region, and continue to warn of future Tsunami risks. The 2004 Tsunami was caused by a major shift in part of a well-known fault line. The result was an increased pressure on other parts of the fault, making further earthquakes more likely.
We never know when a major earthqake will happen. Tsunami waves travel very fast, and it is impossible to provide warnings for those very close to the earthquake zone which generates the wave. However, it is certainly possible to provide other coastal areas further away with adequate time for many people to get out of danger by moving to higher ground.
Tsunami warning systems are now in place across the region most affected in December 2004 and were used during a recent tremor (April 2005). If they had been working earlier, it is possible that many tens of thousands of lives would have been saved.
What is a tsunami?
How are Tsunamis formed? Tsunamis are caused by sudden movement of the sea bed, during an earthquake or volcano. The result is a ripple of waves, just as if you dropped a large stone into a pool. Tsunami waves can travel at over 400 miles an hour through deep ocean, but don't usually cause any trouble at that stage to ships or boats. That's because the water is deep and the waves are long. Ships and boats just rise and fall gently - and may have no idea that a Tsunami wave has just passed beneath them.
However as the wave approaches land, the water becomes more shallow and all the wave energy is concentrated into a very small area. The Tsunami wave slows down and increases in height. It is unusual for the wave to break: more commonly it just looks like a massive tide of water sweeping into the shore. Tsunamis are often called tidal waves, and pictures often show tsunami waves over 30 metres high breaking over the coastline, although the reality is more that the water level rises rapidly, and later falls just as fast.
In the 2004 Tsunami, much of the damage was done by seawater returning to the ocean, and also by a second wave a few minutes after the first.
Tsunami wave facts - speed and depth
Here is some useful data showing how the speed of a Tsunami wave falls as it approaches land, and how the height rises. You can see the graph more clearly, and print it out, by right-clicking on the image and saving it first.
How often do Tsunami waves happen?
Tsunamis happen far more often than most people realise. Hawai sees a small tsunami every year and Alaska, Californai, Oregan, Washington, Japan, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philipines, India and other parts of the world can all expect to experience larger or smaller tsunamis in the future.
Tsunami earthquakes are those where there is a major shift of the seabed as two tectonic plates slide against each other, releasing forces many times as great as an undersea nuclear bomb.
Satellite images of 2004 Tsunami
Tsunami videos
Tsunami videos can be very upsetting to watch if they show the reality of what happens when a mega Tsunami hits land, buildings and people. It is shameful that some people see such things as entertainment. It is impossible to understand the full power of these waves unless you have seen one.
Many Tsunami videoclips from TV news reports and individuals - destruction in India, Thailand, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, rescue efforts and humanitarian help
Tsunami video - dramatic film clip taken by a holiday maker as a huge Tsunami wave sweeps up the beach and into the restaurant of the hotel, showing footage of Tsunami damage, tsunami wave pictures of tsunami victims and scale of tsunami disaster. Sad to see the video is listed in an entertainment area - warning: may be unpsetting to younger children.
* Patrick Dixon has given keynote presentations on a wide range of emerging markets issues in Central America, Latin America, Central Europe, Eastern Europe, Baltic States, Middle East, Africa, Central Asia and South East Asia. He has been a conference speaker at events in Barbados, Belarus, Brazil, Burundi, China, Czech Republic, Democratic Republic of Congo, Egypt, Estonia, Fiji, Estonia, Hungary, India, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Malaysia, Mexico, Morocco, Nigeria, Panama, Poland, Romania, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Africa, Thailand, Turkey, Ukraine, Uganda, United Arab Emirates and Zimbabwe.
Futurist keynote speaker and author of 19 books. Thirty years forecasting global trends for more than 400 clients, in every industry.
Join the debate
65 commentsWhat are your own views? Comments are moderated before they appear.
It is hard to understand how people cope after a big disaster.
Yes I agree. Impossible for other people to imagine.
i feel so sorry for you :-(
TSUNAMISI am so sorry for the people thst has been hit by a tsunami hope you all move to another state like texas we never have any of those stuff
I want videos on your website please
oh my god here after i cant have eyes 2 realize this kind of natural disaster
OH GOD WHY DID U DO THIS............???GOD PLS ,STOP THIS PLS PLS PLS
HAVE U SEEN THOSE CHILD WHO NEVER SEE THEIR PARENTS ..
HV U SEEN THE PARENTS WHO NEVER SEE.........CHILDREN,& BROTHERS,SIS..........
HOW CAN U SEE THIS ,I CANT .........DEAR "GOD"U R OUR FATHER,MOTHER,SIST,BROTHR,ALL IN ALL.........CAN U SEE US IN CRYING................I CANT TL ANY THING MORE ,SRY GOD ...........IF U HEAR ME THEN SAFE US AS OUR FATHER..........................>>>>>>>>>
Re: OH GOD WHY DID U DO THIS............???God has a reason for everything. :)
OH GOD WHY DID U DO THIS............???GOD PLS ,STOP THIS PLS PLS PLS
HAVE U SEEN THOSE CHILD WHO NEVER SEE THEIR PARENTS ..
HV U SEEN THE PARENTS WHO NEVER SEE.........CHILDREN,& BROTHERS,SIS..........
HOW CAN U SEE THIS ,I CANT .........DEAR "GOD"U R OUR FATHER,MOTHER,SIST,BROTHR,ALL IN ALL.........CAN U SEE US IN CRYING................I CANT TL ANY THING MORE ,SRY GOD ...........IF U HEAR ME THEN SAFE US AS OUR FATHER..........................>>>>>>>>>
we are all dedicated prays for those who are affected.......ABINASH
tsunamii really feel sorry for ppl who have lost there near and dear ones but all we can do now is pray for them and for thir families who have lost them
it s clearonly God can do this tsunami so don t think that any body could know how or why>>>>>
Re: it s clearits not God who did the tsunami. thats only a natural disaster
In japan there was a tsunami
indeed it happened there, same time very many p'ple do say that tsunami comes a punishment but according to me it's just developed from the sea level changes due to the different hat generates from the center, that's my research!. anyway how are you!
bad damagethat is very scary and destroyed badly if i were there i would scream like a little girl
omfgtsunamis are so scary to me i hope i never have to go through one in my life... i pray no one does but i cant stop it if it does
awwIm doing a project on the 2004 tsunami and I really needed alot of info and this really helped!
Pikachu!Pikapikachu!
Tsunami's fREAK ME OUT! I have to do a project for school with my neibor,Jackup,And i wanted to do typhoon(If thats how you spell it)
But someone named Tarell said it!!Tsunami is cool though
-Peace,Your girlfriend,ALEX!
lolhahahahaha this is funny
Re: lolwho ever said that was funny think about that first before you say something [what if that would of have happened to you] would you be laughing then i did't think ,so think before you say
Re: lolthat is not funny how would u like it if your houes got destroyed or something .......think about it!
plz don't say stupid things like that and expect not tobe corrected on it.
tsunamiscan you give me a graph on all the tsunamis biggest to smallest
ok
infoI WANT TO KNOW ON WHAT SITE I CAN SEARCH FOR INFO ON TSUNAMI`S. A SITE THAT GIVES A COMPLETE FACT REPORT OR ANY THING.
Re: infoAll you have to do is google it. I googled tsunami pictures,and it brought up several details and graphs.
I know
tsunamii am so sorry what happen there................
so sad
tsunamisorry
Re-tsunamiI wish to state that man often forgets that he/she has equally manifactured sometime valuable and has provided a manual book with which to operate it. What do we expect from the CREATOR of the UNIVERSE after all forms of guidance have reached us. Tsunami is a lesser punishment to what happened to the people of Thamud, whom Allah sent WIND and not WATER to wipe them from the surface of the EARTH. Shall we not ponder?
tsunamithat is really sad i am sorry for them
tsunamiI don't forget tsunami's memory
tsunamicryin out loud
tsunamiiam so very sorry
hi im at schhol
you cant spell!
tsunamidestruction has started it may give more devastating results in future
tsunamii dont like tsunamis
T- sunamiAre you ok. now .Do you know what has happened last night
In what country doyou live.
these are natural no body can stop this
why it is happeningi just cant believe one more tsunami is going to hit indonesia and near by countries. oh my god please save the innocent. already have taken lots of pain.......
Re: why it is happeningI know isan't it sad that innocent people die
omgi am so scared thats a fact
Re: omglilly dont be scared of it. that was ur past , forgot about it. now think of ur present and ur future. lily which country u belongs too............ bye and take care of u and ur family.......
Re: omglilly dont be scared of it. that was ur past , forgot about it. now think of ur present and ur future. lily which country u belongs too............ bye and take care of u and ur family.......
tsunamisdo you have any sujestions? plus that is realy sad because my dad died in the tsunami.
i was in oneokay so when i was in florida there was a tsunami one day and then a week to a month later there was a hurricane. you sont kow me but when i was in the hurricane my mom had to go out side and at that point i got so scared bc thats when the wind blew really hard and you could here the water coming throught the roof. the roof that my sister was sleeping under at that moment
ellloxxohh my gosh this is horrible. i feel so bad for brooke. that must be hard.
mother got herti saw what happened 2 me it is very sad
Re: mother got herti fel so sorry but i cant do anything a but it
im sorry
Re: mother got hertso sad.....u feel the impact of tsunami......the impact is 40%.....and what happend 2 u??:(i feel so sad.....
Hello xHello , my name is Karris and i am really sorry to hear about your Mother , it must of been really hard for you , without my mum i wouldnt no what to do . Was there any other members of your family hurt ?
tsunamii think that the tsunami has touched so many lives, i am so sorry for the families that have lost someone. i can't even think of the pain that you are feeling and i can't even begin to imagine.
Re: tsunamii am so sorry to hear that my name is ayla and my dad got his back broke and i am only 11.
tsunamihello my name is brooke telietha filer and my mum was killed in the tsuami.
So sorry to hear about what happenedDear Brooke, I am so very sorry to hear about what happened to your mother. It must have been such a terrible time for you. In what country do you live? Were other members of your family OK?
Re: tsunamiawww im so sorry
Re: tsunamiawww im so sorry
Re: tsunamisorry to here bthat
Re: tsunamiI'm so sorry :'( I can't relate but I can tell it's difficult. :'(
Re: tsunamiim soory maybe she thinks of you in heaven my cat was killed so i know how you feel i wish that was me not your mom soory that had to happen to her.
Re: tsunamiI am soooo sorry. Mother Nature is soo tempermental sometimes
Re: tsunamii am so sorry of your mother.it was suddenly happened.i have saw it in news.wish you a happy life brooke.