Tsunami- the Wave of Destruction
- Submitted by: mindfreak
- Views: 889
- Category: History
- Date Submitted: 08/23/2011 05:04 AM
- Pages: 7
- Report this Essay
Tsunami- The Wave of Destruction
When the sea parted off the coast of Indonesia on December 26, 2004, the raging water roaring with a medieval echo and raising from the floor of the ocean in gigantic waves, robbed of their loved ones and towns of their identity. The Sumatra earthquake that recorded 9 on the Richter scale had triggered a tsunami that lashed across the coast of 13 nations. When the waves receded, the magnitude of tragedy was over 85,000 dead and millions left homeless. From the 572 dots that comprise the Andaman and Nicobar Islands to Somalia, a country which makes headlines for war as much as for lack of water. The tsunami left little standing in its wake. This killer wave exposed the tenuous grasp humanity has on life. As the toll crossed 10,000 in India, it was a tragedy on the scale of 1993 Latur earthquake and worse than the cyclone that lashed Orissa in 1999.
NAGAPATTINAM
In Nagapattinam district, the situation was the same everywhere. The toll was 4,900 at the last count. The water wiped out the huts, sliced away buildings and submerged entire families. Even the general hospital in the harbour town of Nagapattinam was not spared. Ten-feet high waves gushed into the buildings, just 300 m from the sea and created havoc. The town under the sea water never look the same again. Fishing boats were washed ashore to a distance of 1 km, with many landing on the rail tracks near Naga- pattinam railway station.
Settlements were washed away, electricity poles uprooted and the streets were teeming with people who found no place in the 75-odd relief camps which were spilling over with survivors.
CAR NICOBAR
The Car Nicobar islands of which only 32 are inhabited, are home to some of the most endangered aboriginal tribes on the globe. Among them are the 200 Onges and 30 great Andamanese. They also sit on the tip of the volcano which has erupted several times, the last being in 1996. What’s worse, the island falls in Zone V, which makes...
When the sea parted off the coast of Indonesia on December 26, 2004, the raging water roaring with a medieval echo and raising from the floor of the ocean in gigantic waves, robbed of their loved ones and towns of their identity. The Sumatra earthquake that recorded 9 on the Richter scale had triggered a tsunami that lashed across the coast of 13 nations. When the waves receded, the magnitude of tragedy was over 85,000 dead and millions left homeless. From the 572 dots that comprise the Andaman and Nicobar Islands to Somalia, a country which makes headlines for war as much as for lack of water. The tsunami left little standing in its wake. This killer wave exposed the tenuous grasp humanity has on life. As the toll crossed 10,000 in India, it was a tragedy on the scale of 1993 Latur earthquake and worse than the cyclone that lashed Orissa in 1999.
NAGAPATTINAM
In Nagapattinam district, the situation was the same everywhere. The toll was 4,900 at the last count. The water wiped out the huts, sliced away buildings and submerged entire families. Even the general hospital in the harbour town of Nagapattinam was not spared. Ten-feet high waves gushed into the buildings, just 300 m from the sea and created havoc. The town under the sea water never look the same again. Fishing boats were washed ashore to a distance of 1 km, with many landing on the rail tracks near Naga- pattinam railway station.
Settlements were washed away, electricity poles uprooted and the streets were teeming with people who found no place in the 75-odd relief camps which were spilling over with survivors.
CAR NICOBAR
The Car Nicobar islands of which only 32 are inhabited, are home to some of the most endangered aboriginal tribes on the globe. Among them are the 200 Onges and 30 great Andamanese. They also sit on the tip of the volcano which has erupted several times, the last being in 1996. What’s worse, the island falls in Zone V, which makes...