An earthquake struck last Sunday in the middle of the ocean
off Indonesia. It measured 8.9 on the Richter scale, larger
than any earthquake in the world over the past 40 years since
1964. Since it took place in the middle of the water, the
quake itself caused little damage. However the force set off
by the huge tremor set off devastating tidal waves (tsunami)
that killed at least 40,000 people. The final toll is not yet
known as we go to press on Tuesday, but it is expected to
reach even beyond 50,000.
Tsunamis are rare in the Indian Ocean, which has no system
for detecting them and alerting those in danger, and
scientists there do not have the tools to tell when an
earthquake has created one. Experts at the Pacific Tsunami
Warning Center in Honolulu did not know of any waves until
the first news reports of the deadly waves that hit Sri
Lanka. Usually they send out warnings to areas likely to be
affected, giving people at the coast a chance to run away.
However they have little experience with the Indian Ocean.
The tsunami engulfed coastlines from Indonesia to Africa.
Officials now describe what happened this week as one of the
worst natural disasters in recent history. The acknowledged
toll is beyond 40,000 dead, with at least a third of those
children, according to estimates by aid officials. Since they
are weaker, children were not as able to survive the
onslaught of the water. One estimate was that the final toll
may reach 57,000.
The main effort was at first invested in recovering bodies,
arranging for mass burials and searching for tens of
thousands of the missing in countries thousands of miles
apart.
However as time goes on, relief officials began to worry
about secondary problems, beyond the initial damage.
Officials in Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, India,
the Maldives and even as far away as Somalia in Africa,
worried that with hundreds of thousands of people stranded in
the open without proper drinking water, epidemics of cholera
and other waterborne diseases could take as many lives as the
initial waves.
Fathers and mothers wailed over drowned children. Bodies were
arrayed in long rows in hastily dug trenches. Villagers sat
by ruined homes, stunned. Hotels in some of Thailand's most
luxurious resorts were turned into morgues.
Nine enormous coastlines were devastated. On official said,
"Bigger waves have been recorded. But no wave has affected so
many people." Perhaps half the deaths were in Sri Lanka,
where figures jumped on Tuesday to more than 18,000 killed,
and where more than a million people were reported to have
lost their homes. Indonesia reported more than 15,000 dead,
but information was difficult to come by since some of the
areas most affected had previously been cut off from the
world due to local wars.
The damage was also huge, in the many billions of dollars.
"We cannot fathom the cost of these poor societies and the
nameless fishermen and fishing villages and so on that have
just been wiped out," one aid worker said. "Hundreds of
thousands of livelihoods have gone."
The Israeli Angle
A ZAKA rescue and recovery team left for the disaster areas
Monday night armed with equipment including materials and
tools for identifying bodies, as well as body bags. Thousands
of Israelis were in the general area on vacation or just
touring the world, or on business.
As of Tuesday, Israeli officials expressed specific concern
about 12 Israelis known to have been in the areas who have
not been heard from since the disaster, but there have so far
been no identifications. 33 Israelis are known to have been
hurt, four of them seriously. The Foreign Ministry said that
at least 1,900 Israelis were in the area. More than 1,200 are
positively known to be all right.
Israel offered to send a rescue team and emergency equipment
and supplies to Sri Lanka. That country accepted the goods
but refused the team.
What is a Tsunami?
A tsunami can hardly be seen as it races across an ocean at
hundreds of miles per hour after an earthquake. In the open
ocean, the wave may be only inches high. Boats on the ocean
would feel almost nothing. Only when it hits the shallow
water of a continental shelf does the wave rise to its
destructive height. One survivor said that the wave he saw
was 10 meters high (40 feet).
Survivors in Thailand said that before the wave hit, the
ocean suddenly receded 200 meters, leaving an usually large
stretch of sand on the beach. Most of those watching the
strange phenomenon did not realize that they were in
danger.
It was only when one Australian saw boats racing towards the
shore that he realized that a tidal wave was coming in.
Turning to run away from the shore, he managed to run about
30 meters before being hit by the wave. Afterwards he was
left clutching a pole three stories off the ground. Some
survived by climbing palm trees.
Others realized when they felt the tremors that a tsunami
might follow, and they headed for the hills right away.
Cars were tossed around like toys, and trees were swept away.
Streets were left with twisted wreckage where bustling crowds
had been.
It should be a humbling experience, even for those of us who
follow the events from afar.
