Incredible Disasters

Waves that Qhook the Planet:The 2004 Tsunami

A massive tsunami killed nearly 300,000 people in Southeast Asia on December 26, 2004. The giantwaves were the result of a strong earthquake below the Indian Ocean. It was more powerful than allof the world's earthquakes since 1998 combined! Scientists believe that it had the power of 23,000atom bombs. It actually made Earth wobble on its axis and spin slightly faster. The quake occurredabout 8:00 A.M. just 155 miles off the shore of Sumatra. It shook for four minutes. Those four minutescaused the worst tsunami of modern times.

Most tsunamis occur in the Pacific Ocean. They are usually the result of an undersea earthquake inshallow water. But landslides that change the sea floor or volcanic eruptions can also cause them. Asthe seabed is heaved upward, it displaces huge amounts of water. This forms the waves of a tsunami.Scientists know that warning people to flee is the only course of action once one forms. They haveplaced sensors on the ocean floor to monitor the depth of the water above. These sensors send data toa buoy. The buoy sends the information to satellite. From there it is beamed to the Pacific TsunamiWarning Center in Hawaii. But there are none of these sensors in the Indian Ocean! This is tragic,because the people in Sumatra and other parts of Indonesia had no warning.

Fifteen minutes after the quake, the first giant wave reached northern Sumatra. It crashed onto shore,drowning everything in its path. Then it receded, dragging the dead and the living out to sea. Rescuersrushed to the beach to look for survivors. Suddenly another huge wall of water appeared. It raced towardthem at over 500 miles an hour. No one could outrun it. Over the next seven hours several more giantwaves hit the coast. They were unpredictable and followed no pattern. They battered 12 nations.

Sumatra suffered the worst hit. Whole villages and everyone in them vanished. Afterwards peoplewere buried in mass graves. Food and water were in short supply. The whole region was declared adisaster area. It took years for the villages to be rebuilt. And many people were too afraid to go back.They refuse to live near a coast ever again. And who can blame them?

Incredible Disasters

Waves thai 9hook the PlanetThe 2004 Tsunami

Deadliesi Tsunamis in Recorded Hisiory in Chronological Order

Date Place(s) Hit & Wave Origin Lives Lost Cause

1755

1782

1883

1896

1908

1946

2004

Lisbon, PortugalAtlantic OceanislandsSouth China Sea

Java and Sumatra, IndonesiaIndian Ocean

Sanriku, JapanPacific OceanMessina, ItalyMediterranean Sea

Hilo, Hawaii and JapanPacific OceanJava and Sumatra, Indonesia, India,and east coast of AfricaIndian Ocean

100,000

40,000

36,000

27,000

70,000

6,000

283,100

earthquake

earthquake

volcanic eruption on anearby island

earthquake

earthquake

earthquake off Chile's coast

earthquake

Incredible Disasters

Waves that Qhook the PlanetThe 2004 Tsunami

1. The 2004 tsunami damaged 12 nations with

a. earthquakes. c. high winds.

b. volcanic eruptions. d. tall, fast-moving ocean waves.

2. Tsunamis are usually the result of

a. hurricanes. c. earthquakes.

b. flooding. d. avalanches.

3. Tsunami sensors have been placed throughout the

a. Atlantic Ocean. c. Arctic Ocean.

b. Pacific Ocean. d. Indian Ocean.

4. The people in Sumatra died because they had no idea that the tsunami was on its way.True or false? Explain.

5. Based on the information given in the table, what was the second-worst tsunami in recordedhistory and was its cause the same as the tsunami of 2004?

6. After the 1883 tsunami, parts of Java were considered too dangerous to be resettled and becameparkland. Should the Indonesian government forbid people to live in the coastal areas of Java andSumatra? Defend your stance.