NEWS: 9.0 Quake, Tsunamis Strike SE Asia - 275,000+ Dead

I said last night, on page 20 that I wasnt going to post anymore pictures. I also said I was angry at the people putting this down as a small event.. and arguing about things that do not matter.. LIKE F'N INTERNATIONAL DONATIONS!!

Maybe you guys need to step back from your political upbringings for just a moment, and look at what happened down there.. do some research and get off you high horses of almighty nation bashing and pray for these people..

THOUSANDS OF PICTURES THAT WILL MAKE YOU WANT TO CRY

An aerial view shows tsunami-damaged Meulaboh town, West Aceh, Indonesia, Tuesday, Dec. 28, 2004. Officials have recovered 3,400 bodies in the village so far, but they said they expect to find at least 10,000 died here from Sunday's 9.0 magnitude underwater earthquake and massive tidal waves. (AP Photo/ANTARA)


Another Ariel of Meulaboh


The bodies pile up.. A Thai health official sprays disinfectant on corpses awaiting to be identified in a temple off the coast of Ban Muan, nearly 120 km north of the Thai resort island of Phuket, December 29, 2004.


Thai soldiers search for victims of Sunday's tsunami that hit Phi Phi Island, south of Bangkok, December 29, 2004.


Soldiers dump unknown dead bodies from Sunday's earthquake and tsunamis into a common mass grave Wednesday Dec. 29 2004 in Banda Aceh, Indonesia. At least 32,490 people were killed in Indonesia, all on Sumatra island, the Health Ministry said Wednesday. It said this figure did not include districts on Sumatra's hard-hit western coast, meaning the final death toll will almost certainly rise significantly.
SENSITIVE PICTURE! story.news.yahoo.com.../041229/481/jak11512291440

A pile of sneakers in the Thai beach resort of Phuket December 29, 2004 after a tsunami slammed the island's popular Patong beach.


A view of the Yala Safari Lodge in Palatupana, outside the Yala National Park, Sri Lanka, December 29, 2004 after a tsunami hit the area on Sunday.


The body of a young girl killed by the weekend's massive tsunami lies outstretched on a beach of a flattened fishing village, Wednesday, Dec. 29
SENSITIVE PICTURE! story.news.yahoo.com.../041229/481/xws10212291026

Residents walk through debris at destroyed market after tidal waves hit at the provincial capital of Banda Aceh, Aceh province, Indonesia's Sumatra island, Wednesday, Dec. 29, 2004. The military was preparing to dig mass graves Wednesday on Indonesia's battered Sumatra Island, where the government said the official death toll from an earthquake and tsunamis had reached more than 32,000.


Indian man weeps near the debris of his damaged house which was hit by Sunday's tsunami in Nagapattinam port, 350 km (219 miles) south of the Indian city of Madras December 29, 2004. Rescue teams headed out on Wednesday to the last of the remote Andaman and Nicobar islands, cut off since Sunday's monster wave triggered by an earthquake killed almost 70,000 people across Asia





Step back and look at the suffering.. and grow up in the process..



Live videos of the approaching waves... and horror and news recordings from Thai: jlgolson.blogspot.com...

Edit: The video links seem to be down momentarily...




[edit on 12/29/2004 by QuietSoul]

It is certainly not for anyone on these boards to determine how much a nation can and cannot afford to provide in aid. Besides which, the most important form of aid is not the money but the supplies that are being shipped in by all nations involved.

Very true, but it's difficult to hold back when someone uses a tragedy like this to further insult your nation, regardless of the moron at the helm. So, I'll agree to likewise no longer go down that road...

100,000. Wow. Worst part is, the worst is still to come. There'll be bodies that sit undiscovered, that will breed disease, there'll be contaminated water supplies, food shortages, lack of shelter, etc. to follow, and will lead to more deaths, no matter how much aid makes it to those in need. Then the economic repercussions on these economies...

Originally posted by Indigo_Child

This pizzes me off.

I am a US taxpayer, and you have just called me, and all US taxpayers greedy.

No, I called the US government greedy.

Whatever indigo child, any moron knows the u.s. government gets it's operating cash from people just like me. Your comment was way, way out of line, and I resent it.

And you, and Irondog, you two, and all the others in your camp, should just shut up about it. The United States gives billions of money, food, and medical supplies annually, and that doesn't even count the billions given by ordinary citizens like me through church, red cross, salvation army and other donations.

You are so off base with this is it just sickening.

Tell me the total amount of money a year from now, who spent what to rebuild these countries, and we shall see who gave more.

Originally posted by FredT
Swedish Boy, Dad Reunited After Tsunami

Stories like this are far and few between in this catastrophy. We should be focusing on things like this instead of bickering. Some of you people must have no idea what it is like to loose a loved one. Just click on FredT's link and read the story. I dare you not to cry.

This event is a gift to world government
If it hadn't happened, they'd have made it happen, if they could
Perhaps they did

Originally posted by smokenmirrors
Whatever indigo child, any moron knows the u.s. government gets it's operating cash from people just like me. Your comment was way, way out of line, and I resent it.

While I agree that it is ridiculous that anybody use this unimaginable horror as a tool to further express how much they dislike America, we as taxpayers do not get any say in what our money is spent on, especially during unexpected events like this. If we did, we would send every penny we could, but we don't so you shouldn't take it so personal. Forget these diehard America haters, when this is all said and done, I have no doubt our country will have contributed more than any other country, even though individually and as a country, we're in debt up to our necks.

As far as this disaster itself, I can't understand why there are no early warning systems in the Indian ocean like we have in the Pacific, while they're not as frequent there, some of the most devastating tsunamis in history have occurred in the Indian ocean. The last major one there killed over 300,000 people. It's always only a matter of time before nature comes full circle.

Today some very disturbing estimates came from the education minister
of the Maldives Islands in an interview with NPR News.

www.npr.org...

Initial assessments indicate that they may have lost +/- 120,000 souls
of the estimated 270,000 populating those islands.
Essentially 50% of the population.

Access is still too difficult to determine if these figures are correct, however given that

the majority of these islands do not exceed 3 feet above sea level in elevation,

these estimates may in fact be conservative.

If so, this will prove to be the greatest loss of life in modern day history
caused by a single natural event.

Even more disturbing, is the fact that in most cases nearly 50% of
these populations is younger than 15 years old.

I pray that we may rise above our petty differences and help those so deeply in need.



NOTE: I am waiting for a clarification response from NPR.

In the interview, Melissa Block states 120 of 270,000
Given the elevation of these islands and the general content
of the interview, I presume she was indicating 120,000 of 270,000.
















[edit on 29-12-2004 by FallenFromTheTree]

[edit on 29-12-2004 by FallenFromTheTree]

[edit on 29-12-2004 by FallenFromTheTree]

Originally posted by 27jd

Originally posted by smokenmirrors

As far as this disaster itself, I can't understand why there are no early warning systems in the Indian ocean like we have in the Pacific

Because the Pacific rim is populated by very rich nations, while most of the affected communities here were 'useless eaters' (Kissinger)

Originally posted by dh
Because the Pacific rim is populated by very rich nations, while most of the affected communities here were 'useless eaters' (Kissinger)

As terrible as it is, you may be right. That's the only explanation for why we don't have a global warning system for oceanic threats like this. It's not like this is the first time this has happened there, I'm sure many were aware of the potential for this to occur. Hopefully the thoughts of the thousands of children washed away to their deaths haunts those who see other human beings as "useless eaters".

Originally posted by 27jd

Originally posted by dh
Because the Pacific rim is populated by very rich nations, while most of the affected communities here were 'useless eaters' (Kissinger)

As terrible as it is, you may be right. That's the only explanation for why we don't have a global warning system for oceanic threats like this. It's not like this is the first time this has happened there, I'm sure many were aware of the potential for this to occur. Hopefully the thoughts of the thousands of children washed away to their deaths haunts those who see other human beings as "useless eaters".

Unfortunately, they love it
They thrive on mass death
It gives them courage
On to the next sign post
There are creatures feeding on this kind of thing

Mother Earth is ruthless in her 'culling' and demands respect - I feel for the family and friends of those who have died.

This is a time of grieving ... it is also a time for people everywhere to come together, to stop fighting - put aside their differences, and to help care for the millions who are now displaced, injured, suffering and much in need of aid.

This is a disaster of epic proportions that affects us all. It is also an opportunity for us to get in touch with the love, compassion and generosity within our natures, to return to humility, to look at our priorities and to truly appreciate our lives on this planet.




[edit on 29-12-2004 by c_au]

What is safe haven buying? I know this is slightly off topic, but it also has relevance to the disaster. Can anyone clarify this term for me? I was sorting pictures related to the disaster, and found this one.
story.news.yahoo.com.../041227/photos_ts_afp/041227131820_iokkperg_photo0

I looked up safe haven buying, and I can't figure out if it's a financial term, or if the article is referring to the safe haven charity, which has a presence in the region. Any help with this quandry would be appreciated.

[edit on 29-12-2004 by WyrdeOne]

Also, in response to the several people who have asked why no early warning system is in place, and the answer to that, above and beyond the kissinger quote, there was a warning system. However, if you read back some pages you'll see a couple of posts regarding the fact that a warning was considered and then cancelled, ostensibly to save the tourist industry the financial strain. I imagine everybody is going to be feeling the strain now.

[edit on 29-12-2004 by WyrdeOne]

its interesting to read through all of the pages here and see the grieving process unfold, some of you need to get off of your soap boxes and smell the coffee. 1/2 thousand posts so far, 24 thousand views, a good percentage of posts are nothing but bickering. not new on these forums here i guess.
how many of you ppl sitting in your comfortable homes with clean drinking water, a place to relieve yourselves, a grocery store down the block or a kid to bounce on your lap, are actually going to send cash donations? time to put some positive energy into getting of off your arses and put your money where your mouth is. you can even donate with a credit card or a debit card. its that easy folks.

Heaven got alot of new angels.
Happy New Year.

Heres summore info about the earthquake...

Heres a graph illustrating the tidal wave caused by the 8.9 earthquake..



The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center Detected the Earthquake and after 15 minutes issued a communique to Pacific Islands saying that there shall be no threats to them and also advises that there is a Tsunami watch going on but not an alert. 65 minutes later a second communique repeats the same information and says that there may a possibility of a Tsunami at the epicenter..

www.prh.noaa.gov...



The devastating megathrust earthquake of December 26th, 2004 occurred on the interface of the India and Burma plates and was cause by the release of stresses that develop as the India plate subducts beneath the overriding Burma plate. The India plate begins its decent into the mantle at the Sunda trench which lies to the west of the earthquake's epicenter. The trench is the surface expression of the India-Burma plate interface.

The tectonics of the region is complex and involves the interaction of the Australian, Sunda and Eurasian plates in addition to the India and Burma plate. The India and Australia plates move northeastwards at a rate of about 6 cm/year relative to the Burma plate. This results in oblique convergence at the Sunda trench. Some of this oblique motion is accommodated on the right-lateral transform faults and rifts that separate the Burma and Sunda plates.

Preliminary locations of larger aftershocks following the megathrust earthquake show that approximately 1000 km of the plate boundary slipped as a result of the earthquake. Aftershocks are distributed along much of the shallow plate interface and primarily extend northwards of the epicenter to the Andaman Islands.

The worlds largest recorded earthquakes were all megathrust events and occur where one tectonic plate subducts beneath another. These include: the magnitude 9.5 1960 Chile earthquake, the magnitude 9.2 1964 Prince William Sound, Alaska earthquake, the magnitude 9.1 1957 Andreanof, Alaska earthquake, and the magnitude 9.0 1952 Kamchatka earthquake. As with the recent event, megathrust earthquakes often generate large tsunamis that can cause damage over a much wider area than is directly effected by ground shaking near the earthquake's rupture.



This isnt the first time this region was hit by a Tsunami.. In 1941, a tsunami formed in the Bay of Bengal which killed roughly 5000 people. Small in comparison to the numbers of today.. the tsunami was record at being .75 to 1.25 meters in hieght.. the difference? They were warned. And this new tsunami was more then 9 meters tall. Source

Heres some more info sites that have been collecting the videos.. I'd put the videos up myself (I downloaded them last night) but I fear my bandwidth will be raped if I do.. so bittorrent it is..

www.waveofdestruction.org...

I've been following this since it was mentioned yesterday on ATS and been looking for news about them. CNN is noting that the government is trying to assess the loss of life from these tribes. In the case of one tribe only 30 people are believed to make up the whole tribal family.

The remote cluster of more than 550 islands, of which only about three dozen are inhabited, is home to six tribes of Mongoloid and African origin who have lived there for thousands of years.

Many of these tribal people are semi-nomadic and subsist on hunting with spears, bows and arrows, and by fishing and gathering fruit and roots. They still cover themselves with tree bark or leaves.

*snip*

Paleolithic people
Anthropologists say their biggest concern was five tiny aboriginal tribes: the Great Andamanese, Sentinelese, Onge, Jarawa and the Shompen.

Some like the Great Andamanese are already down to 30 people while others like the Shompen, who live in the southernmost island of Great Nicobar, number between 200-250.

"We hear there are many casualties in Great Nicobar. We are very worried about the Shompen who exist only in small numbers and are highly endangered," Bagchi said.

*snip*

"They are true hunter-gatherers. They only hunt for their own consumption. It will be a tragedy if such tribal cultures are lost," Loknath Soni, a social anthropologist of the state-run Anthropological Survey of India, told Reuters from Calcutta.

Little is known about the approximately 200 Sentinelese who have been traditionally hostile to outsiders. Government records say the Sentinelese are probably one of the world's only surviving Paleolithic people, who almost never leave their island.

The entire article can be found - here

B.

Right now on ABC, they're doing a special on the Tsunami.... Some great footage, as well as some good human interest survival stories, etc. Some of this really gives you somewhat of an idea what it was, and is like for those going through this....

And to think, here in Florida we got dramatic over a few hurricanes... Man, those storms are NOTHING like what these people are facing....simply unimaginable....

Originally posted by Gazrok
Right now on ABC, they're doing a special on the Tsunami.... Some great footage, as well as some good human interest survival stories, etc. Some of this really gives you somewhat of an idea what it was, and is like for those going through this....

And to think, here in Florida we got dramatic over a few hurricanes...

Man, those storms are NOTHING like what these people are facing....simply unimaginable....

Well, if you call just being dramatic having 5 major hurricanes hitting in one season....

The fact of the matter is that the Earthquakes that they had in SE Asia, and the other earthquakes they are still having around that area are part of what is going on around the world. I fear that all this is going to get worse. If an earthquake like that one happens anywhere close to the canary islands we are going to have a much higher tsunami that will reach many places around the Earth, and at least 10 times the deaths caused by this lattest disaster. Living at the beach and in coastal cities is fun for a lot of people, but it is not safe....much more so when once in a while mother Earth, with the help of human activities this time around, goes on a rampage.... i don't believe the world is going to end, but disasters like what happened in Asia are happening more and more, and they are getting worse.

It is also true, and I understand that many people live close by the sea because it is their livelihood, and it is not very easy for these people not to live so close to the beach or at small islands. Mankind forgets very fast the past, and more so when they disregard the disasters that we had had in ancient times. What has happened in that region is horrible, it truly is, but I fear that not much will be done concerning the high possibility of preparing, or even mitigating some of the damage caused by any other disasters like this one happening again in the future.

From the BostonHerald:

Pfizer Inc., the world's biggest drugmaker, is donating $35 million to victims of the weekend's earthquake and tsunamis in Asia, matching the aid the U.S. government has said it will provide.

The company said in a statement today it will provide $10 million in cash to relief groups and $25 million more in products, including its Zithromax, Zyvox and Diflucan anti-infectives.

``Pfizer is responding to this enormous tragedy through the donation of needed medicines, funds and logistical support to assist both in the immediate relief and the longer term management of the disease and health risks,'' Chief Executive Officer Hank McKinnell said in the statement.

I'm usually on the pharmaceutical bashing band wagon but I'll give credit where it's due - kudos to Pfizer for their donation.

B.

Link

Bleys,

Thats what I like to see. thumbs up to Pfizer..
Lets see something from Wal-Mart...The oil companies!
Microsoft.

A lot of us at ATS should be donating as well, if we can.
I have, and will repeat again, on Payday.