Threatening Disaster: Tsunamis

A tsunami is a sequence of ocean waves that sends surges of water, sometimes reaching heights of over 100 feet onto land. These walls of water can cause extensive destruction when they crash aground. Tsunamis may also be caused by underwater landslides or volcanic eruptions. They may even be launched, as they frequently were in Earth’s ancient past, by the impact of a large meteorite plunging into an ocean.

Tsunamis race across the sea at up to 500 miles an hour about as fast as a jet airplane. A tsunami’s trough, the low point beneath the wave’s crest, often reaches shore first. When it does, it produces a vacuum effect that sucks coastal water seaward and exposes harbor and sea floors. In Deep Ocean, tsunami waves may appear only a foot or so high. But as they approach shoreline and enter shallower water they slow down and begin to grow in energy and height.

The best resistance against any tsunami is early warning that allows people to look for higher ground. The Pacific Tsunami caution System, a union of 26 nations headquartered in Hawaii, maintains a web of seismic equipment and water level gauges to recognize tsunamis at sea. Similar systems are proposed to protect coastal areas worldwide.

Indonesia Considers Proposal to Introduce Disaster 101 At Schools

Jakarta. In the wake of recent calamities such as the Mount Merapi eruptions and Mentawai tsunami, the government is considering including disaster preparedness in the national school curriculum.

Tito Setiawan, a spokesman for the Coordinating Ministry for People’s Welfare, said on Sunday that its officials were planning to meet with the National Education Ministry and other stakeholders to discuss the proposal.

However, he declined to say when the plans would be introduced, because these had yet to be worked out.

“We need schools to prepare the students to handle disasters,” Tito said. “We’re going to work on how we can make this is as a part of curriculums and implement it effectively.”

View Full Story

Canada offers $100,000 in aid to victims of Indonesian disasters

OTTAWA—Ottawa says it will provide humanitarian support to those affected by the recent natural disasters in Indonesia.

International Co-operation Minister Bev Oda announced today the government would offer $100,000 to the International Federation of Red Cross (IFRC) and Red Crescent Societies.

The money will go to providing non-food emergency supplies to some of those affected by the recent volcanic eruptions and earthquake.

Indonesia’s Mount Merapi volcano began erupting October 25, killing 138 people and displacing more than 100,000.

On the same day, a strong earthquake struck off the coast of Sumatra island, triggering a tsunami and killing no less than 449 people and displacing some 15,000.

Indonesia is one of Canada’s countries of focus in Asia and in 2008-2009, the Canadian International Development Agency contributed $79.32 million in development assistance to Indonesia.

Indonesia Disaster Survivors Get Aid as Planes, Vessels Arrive

October 28 (Bloomberg) -- Tsunami survivors in Indonesia’s remote west will receive tents, medicine and other supplies today, and aid workers are feeding and providing necessities to evacuees from a volcanic eruption on another island.

The number of missing after the October 25 tsunami that hit the Mentawai Islands off the west coast of Sumatra fell to 378 from 400 as rescuers found people alive, Harmensyah, head of the West Sumatra Regional Disaster Management Agency, said by telephone today. The death toll remained at 311, he said.

“Today we will send food and supplies to the areas by Hercules,” Ferry Faisal, an official at the Sumatra agency, said by phone, referring to the Lockheed Martin Corp. C-130 transport plane. “We will drop them from the air as this is the fastest way to reach them while we’re also preparing to send clothes, medicines and tents by vessel.”

In Central Java, about 400 kilometers (250 miles) east of Jakarta, Red Cross Indonesia workers are treating people who were burned or otherwise injured after the Mount Merapi volcano erupted three times October 26, spewing superheated ash.

View Full Story

Indonesia disaster death toll rises

A volcanic eruption and a tsunami have killed scores of people hundreds of miles apart in Indonesia - reactions from the Pacific "Ring of Fire" which spawns disasters from deep within the Earth.

The eruption of Mount Merapi on Tuesday killed at least 25 people, forced thousands to flee down its slopes and spewed burning ash and smoke high into the air on the island of Java.

Meanwhile, off the coast of Sumatra, about 800 miles west of the volcano, rescuers battled rough seas to reach the remote Mentawai islands, where a 10ft tsunami triggered by an earthquake swept away hundreds of homes, killing at least 113 villagers, said the health ministry's crisis centre. Up to 500 others are missing.

The twin disasters happened hours apart in one of the most seismically active regions on the planet.

Scientists have warned that pressure building beneath Merapi's lava dome could trigger its most powerful explosion in years. But Gede Swantika, a government volcanologist, expressed hope the 9,737ft mountain, which sent rocks and debris cascading down its southern slope, could be releasing steam slowly.

View Full Story

Queen of the Sea rail disaster

World's Biggest rail disaster
Details
Date	26 December 2004
Location	Peraliya, Hikkaduwa
Country	Sri Lanka
Rail line	Coastal line
Operator	Sri Lanka Railways
Type of incident	Flood
Cause	Tsunami
Statistics
Trains	1 Train
Deaths	Exact figures unknown, at least 1,700+
Injuries	unknown

This unfortunate event, the worst rail disaster world has ever seen so far, occurred when a crowded passenger train was destroyed on a coastal railway in Sri Lanka by the tsunami which followed the 2004 Indian Ocean Earthquake, and resulted in the greatest loss of life in railroad history. More than 1,700 people died, much higher than the previous rail disaster with most fatalities, the Bihar train disaster in India in 1981.

Train

The train was a regular service train operating between the cities, Colombo and Galle. The route it took runs along the southwestern coast of Sri Lanka, and at Telwatta, the line is about 200 metres (660 ft) inland. On Sunday, 26 December 2004, during both the Christmas holiday weekend and a Buddhist full moon holiday, it left Colombo shortly after 7:30 A.M. with a capacity load of around 1,500 passengers on board.


Tsunami waves strike the crowded train

At 9:30 A.M., in the village of Peraliya, near Telwatta, the beach was hit by the first of the huge waves thrown up by the earthquake, which had recently struck off the coast of Indonesia. The train came to a halt as water surged around it. Hundreds of local people, believing the train to be secure on the rails, climbed on top of the train to avoid being swept away. Others stood behind it, hoping the train would take the force of the water. The wave caused flooding in the carriages and began to cause panic amongst the passengers. The next wave, by far the biggest of the entire day at over 18 feet (5.5 m) high, picked the train up and smashed it against the trees and houses which lined the track, crushing those seeking shelter behind it. The eight carriages were so packed with people that the doors could not be opened, and they filled with water, drowning almost everyone inside, as the water washed over the wreckage several more times.

The casualties

Due to the huge scale of the disaster, the authorities were unable to cope with the devastation, and emergency services and military forces were so stretched that immediate rescue was not an option. In fact, the Sri Lankan authorities had no idea where the train was for several hours, until it was spotted from the air. The local emergency services were destroyed, and it was a long time before help arrived. Dozens of people badly injured in the disaster died in the wreckage during the day, and many bodies were not retrieved for over a week. Some families descended on the area determined to find their relatives.

Aftermath

The first anniversary ceremonies were held amongst the rebuilt town alongside the repaired railway, which still operates a Colombo to Galle service, employing the same guard who was on the train and survived the disaster.[citation needed] The Train, now restored with the same locomotive (No. 591) and two of its original carriages, returned to Paraliya on 26 December 2008, four years after the disaster. A religious ceremony and a memorial was held to remember those who lost their lives four years ago. It has now returned to regular service on the coastal line.

2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami

2004 Indian Ocean earthquake

Tsunami strikes Ao Nang, Thailand.
Date	December 26, 2004 (2004-12-26)
Magnitude	9.1 Mw
Depth	30 km (19 mi)
Epicenter location	3°18′58″N 95°51′14″E / 3.316°N 95.854°E / 3.316; 95.854Coordinates: 3°18′58″N 95°51′14″E / 3.316°N 95.854°E / 3.316; 95.854
Type	Undersea (subduction)
Countries or regions affected	Indonesia (mainly in Aceh) Sri Lanka India (mostly in Tamil Nadu) Thailand Maldives
Tsunami	Yes
Casualties	230,000+ (the fifth deadliest earthquake in recorded history)

The 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake was an undersea megathrust earthquake that occurred at 00:58:53 UTC on December 26, 2004, with an epicentre off the west coast of Sumatra, Indonesia. The quake itself is known by the scientific community as the Sumatra-Andaman earthquake. The resulting tsunami is given various names, including the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, Asian Tsunami, Indonesian Tsunami, and Boxing Day Tsunami.

The earthquake was caused by subduction and triggered a series of devastating tsunamis along the coasts of most landmasses bordering the Indian Ocean, killing over 230,000 people in fourteen countries, and inundating coastal communities with waves up to 30 meters (100 feet) high. It was one of the deadliest natural disasters in recorded history. Indonesia was the hardest hit, followed by Sri Lanka, India, and Thailand.

With a magnitude of between 9.1 and 9.3, it is the second largest earthquake ever recorded on a seismograph. This earthquake had the longest duration of faulting ever observed, between 8.3 and 10 minutes. It caused the entire planet to vibrate as much as 1 cm (0.4 inches) and triggered other earthquakes as far away as Alaska.

The plight of the many affected people and countries prompted a widespread humanitarian response. In all, the worldwide community donated more than $7 billion (2004 U.S. dollars) in humanitarian aid. The hypocenter occurred between Simeulue and mainland Indonesia.