Maybe Up To 6000 Dead, Tidal Waves Slams Thailand

[ThaiLover1]

David Booth of the British Geological Survey, said there was "no reason" why the Indian Ocean should not have had a warning system in place. "It's difficult to do it for the earthquake itself, but it's easier to do it for tsunamis".

Let's learn from the past. Some people are already doing something about it. Read more here:

Tsunami warning system calls grow

[RDN]

Channel 11 has full coverage at the mo in English.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Yes, I watched that. Now don't get me wrong, because I love Thailand, but I hope they get rid of the presenter on the left - "Jay Bunnag". He looked as if he was totally fed up and bored with his job - looked like he'd lost a 1000 baht note and found 50 satang. He hardly opened his mouth to speak, stared 100% at the camera and mumbled about a "deaf toll". I'm sure Channel 11 could find a better English speaker than him, one that at least makes an attempt to sound interested in what he was saying.

[Highwayman]

Hundreds missing from hotel

From correspondents in Paris

December 28, 2004

SEVERAL hundred people were missing from a single hotel on Thailand's resort island of Phuket after a devastating tsunami, the French hotel group which manages the site said today. An Accor spokeswoman said the Sofitel Magic Lagoon Khao Lak hotel had 350 guests of various nationalities and 200 to 250 employees working when the wave struck. About 100 had been accounted for today and evacuated to Bangkok.

Accor representatives said they could not determine the nationalities of those missing, but German television quoted German consular officials as saying that most of the tourists staying there were German nationals. Accor had rushed about 50 employees to the site and asked for help from the Thai authorities, said the spokeswoman.

The wave "swept away" everything inside the hotel, a source said.

Accor manages two other hotels on Phuket, the Novotel Phuket and Panwa Beach Resort, where there were no reported victims. Earlier, Thai officials said 130 were confirmed killed on Phuket and as many as 2000 may have died across southern parts of the country.

Agence France-Presse

[onethailand]

I hope they get rid of the presenter on the left - "Jay Bunnag".

Won't happen, unfortunately, especially as he comes from a prominent family. It appears that all of the presenters get both television and radio time, and they basically work shifts.

New reports coming in say that there may be as many as 2000 dead nationwide... with thousands missing on PhangNga. But thousands "missing" realistically means thousands "presumed dead", since PhangNga isn't exactly accessible. Most are foreign tourists - obviously some Thai employees, but the low "foreign" count is likely to dramatically rise.

If these fears are confirmed, there will be way more than 2000.

[chuchok]

This is just the tip of the iceburg unfortunatly.

[Laurie]

I am very interested to hear from anyone who might have news of what happened at Nui Beach - the beach between Nai Harn and Kata Noi . I fear the worst, given that it is a very narrow bay.

[Darknight]

DISASTER TOLL updated

Sri Lanka: 13,000 dead

Indonesia: 4,500 dead

India: 3,500 dead

Thailand: 866 dead

Maldives: 52 dead

Malaysia: 44 dead

Burma: 30 dead

Bangladesh: 2 dead

The red cross estimates total fatalities in India on 6.000...

Now also Africa hit by tsunami in despite of gevernement trying to warn people.....

Many missing as waves hit Africa

Beaches in Kenya have now reopened

Hundreds of Somalis are feared to have drowned in the massive waves produced by Sunday's undersea earthquake off the coast of Indonesia.

A government spokesman said settlements along Somalia's coast had been flooded by the rising waters.

"Coastal towns have been swept away by the waves and there is severe damage to property," Yusuf Ismail said.

Waves which swept 7,000km (4,000 miles) from the epicentre, also struck Kenya, Mauritius, Reunion and the Seychelles.

About 100 Somali fishermen have not returned after putting out to sea on Sunday.

"The bodies of 48 people have been recovered," rural development minister in Somalia's north-east state of Puntland, Ali Abdi Awari, told BBC News.

Somali elders gathering information on two-way radios and local journalists put the death toll at more than 50 people, although Mr Ismail said the deaths on land alone in the central and north-eastern areas could be "in the hundreds".

The government - which is currently based in Kenya as it is considered too dangerous for ministers to return to Mogadishu - has called for aid.

[ferd54]

just listening to the foreign aid coming in;

Australia A$10,000,000 + 2 planeloads aid products

EU 25 nations      Euro 3,000,000

USA          US$ 100,000

seems something wrong with this equation

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

From the AP:

By Barry Schweid

The Associated Press

Washington - The United States dispatched disaster specialists Monday and prepared an initial $15 million aid package to the Asian countries hit by a massive earthquake and tsunamis.

U.S. officials were seeking to contact hundreds of Americans who remain unaccounted for in the region.

Secretary of State Colin Powell said eight Americans died in the natural disaster, and that embassy officials were trying to locate other U.S. citizens who have not been heard from since Sunday's quake.

"We will do everything we can to immediately help," Powell said. "This is, indeed, an international tragedy." U.S. officials immediately sent $100,000 each to India, Indonesia, the Maldives and Sri Lanka, and planned to donate $4 million later Monday to help Red Cross disaster efforts, Powell said.

The initial U.S. aid package being crafted was expected to reach at least $15 million, said Ed Fox of the U.S. Agency for International Development. He called it an initial response until surveys are concluded and requests considered.

Also, Fox said, the United States was drawing on shelter, food, water cans and other supplies that were kept in reserve in the Philippines and in Dubai.

Powell cautioned that was a "quick infusion" and that the administration was prepared to help with long-term rebuilding.

He also said while several hundred Americans were unaccounted for it does not imply they were casualties. "It just means we haven't been able to reach out and get contact with them," he told reporters at the State Department.

Assessment groups were sent to Thailand and Indonesia, and 21 specialists will fan out through the region to help with sanitation, health and relief supplies, Fox said. Most of the specialists are based in Thailand.

The U.S. Navy said it sent three P-3 surveillance aircraft from Kadena air base on the Japanese island of Okinawa to Utaphao, Thailand, to conduct survey operations, including a possible role in search-and-rescue efforts.

The Navy said it had no reports of damage to any of its ships or bases in the region.

[buadhai]

The Los Angeles Times has an article which states:

The magnitude 9.0 earthquake that struck off Indonesia on Sunday morning moved the entire island of Sumatra about 100 feet to the southwest, pushing up a gigantic mass of water that collapsed into a tsunami and devastated shorelines around the Indian Ocean and the South China Sea.

Is it really possible that the entire island of Sumatra moved 100 feet? It seems almost too fantastic to be true.

Any geologists out there?

[usatrader]

just listening to the foreign aid coming in;

Australia A$10,000,000 + 2 planeloads aid products

EU 25 nations      Euro 3,000,000

USA          US$ 100,000

seems something wrong with this equation

*

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uslatest/story/0...4696432,00.html

Hmmm. It does seem an odd sought opportunity in such tragic circumstances. But what the hey some like to show that about themselves.

All that has happened in South Asia stuns me. I know I can do little from here to help. I did however try.

Contacted family members to donate to the Thai Red Cross (Government Savings Bank (GSB), the Government House Branch, account No. 00-0025-20-014972-3).

They informed me that there is an urgent need for blood. They also said they desperate need for specific types of westerner Fahrang blood bad.

My humble prayers and regrets for everyone harmed or survived in all this madness.

I know everyone will rally to the cause as best they can with what they can.

That is all.

[ferd54]

In check at 6 a.m. Thailand time, I found on the USGS website:

A moderate earthquake occurred at 19:28:49 (UTC) on Monday, December 27, 2004. The magnitude 5.4 event has been located in the NICOBAR ISLANDS, INDIA REGION. (This event has been reviewed by a seismologist.)

That would make it about 2:30 a.m Tuesday Thai time.

Yesterday:

A moderate earthquake occurred at 11:57:53 (UTC) on Monday, December 27, 2004. The magnitude 5.1 event has been located in the NICOBAR ISLANDS, INDIA REGION. (This event has been reviewed by a seismologist.)

That would make it about 7 p.m. Monday Thai time.

While the aftershocks are seemingly becoming less powerful, they are still happening...

For those who don't know, the Nicobar Islands belong to India, but they are essentially due west of Phuket out further in the Andaman Sea.

[britmaveric]

A Breakdown by Country of Tsunami Deaths By The Associated Press

Officials said more than 22,000 people were killed in 10 countries in southern Asia and Africa after massive tsunami waves smashed coastlines Sunday morning. A breakdown of the toll so far:

Sri Lanka: A military spokesman says the death toll is 10,029 in government-controlled areas. Tamil rebels say 2,000 were killed in their areas, making a total of 12,029. More than 1 million people were displaced from wrecked villages.

_ Indonesia: Government officials say about 4,991 people were killed. Aceh province on Sumatra island was near the quake's epicenter and was the hardest-hit part of the vast archipelago.

_ India: An estimated 4,000 people died, the finance minister said. The worst-hit area was Tamil Nadu state. Huge waves left southern beaches strewn with bodies and flipped-over boats and cars. A toll put out by the international Red Cross in Geneva said 6,000 were killed in India.

_ Thailand: The government said 918 persons died, 7,396 were injured and thousands were missing, mostly in idyllic southern islands packed with tourists from around the world. Among the dead was Poom Jensen, 21, the Thai-American grandson of King Bhumipol Adulyadej.

_ Malaysia: At least 52 people, including an unknown number of foreign tourists, were dead, according to official reports. Tens of thousands of people were evacuated temporarily from hotels and apartments after the Indonesian quake was felt throughout peninsular Malaysia.

_ Maldives: At least 43 people were confirmed dead and 51 were reported missing in this popular tourist destination.

_ Myanmar: Thirty deaths were reported, including 12 when waves destroyed a bridge in Kawthaung, fishing industry and nonprofit officials said. Myanmar's military-run regime rarely provides details of disasters in the country.

_ Somalia: In this African country nearly 3,000 miles from the quake's epicenter, a presidential spokesman said hundreds were killed and entire villages were wiped out. No exact death toll was available.

_ Bangladesh: Tidal surges killed at least two children as a boat with about 15 tourists capsized.

_ Seychelles: Three people killed.

[Head Snake]

The Los Angeles Times has an article which states:

The magnitude 9.0 earthquake that struck off Indonesia on Sunday morning moved the entire island of Sumatra about 100 feet to the southwest, pushing up a gigantic mass of water that collapsed into a tsunami and devastated shorelines around the Indian Ocean and the South China Sea.

Is it really possible that the entire island of Sumatra moved 100 feet? It seems almost too fantastic to be true.

Any geologists out there?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

SOmething surely is wrong with that statement about moving the whole island of Sumatra 100'. Sumatra is a huge island. If it moved the whole island, you would have heard about severe damaget to Java, Singapore, Borneo and Malaysia.

They must mean the the rift along the fault moved that amount.

I really think you will hear some upcoming news from Indonesia about much higher death tolls. I don't think too much news is coming from West Sumatra where I bet most damage was.

Edited December 28, 2004 by Head Snake

[buadhai]

Something surely is wrong with that statement about moving the whole island of Sumatra 100'  Sumatra is a huge island.  If it moved the whole island, you would have heard about severe damaget to Java, Singapore, Borneo and Malaysia.

They must mean the the rift along the fault moved that amount.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

It didn't sound right to me, either. All the other news organizations reporting the same figure seem to quote the LA Times. Odd that they'd get something like that so wrong, though.

[cdnvic]

I haven't heard anything from Western Australia... shouldn't the waves have radiated 360 degrees and hit there?

cv

[dr_Pat_Pong]

I haven't heard anything from Western Australia... shouldn't the waves have radiated 360 degrees and hit there?

cv

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

The shore lines were battered but no serious outcomes.

[jackr]

I haven't heard anything from Western Australia... shouldn't the waves have radiated 360 degrees and hit there?

cv

Minimal I'd have thought as the fault runs north-south and thus most of the energy went east and west. West Oz is too far southeast to have been affected and Sumatra would've absorbed most of the wave travelling in that direction.

[george]

National flag halved hoisted for three days to mourn tsunami's deaths

BANGKOK: -- The cabinet has ordered government agencies and public places to halved hoist the national flag for three days to mourn the death of tsunami's victims on Sunday

The cabinet resolved at its weekly meeting here this morning that the national flag be halved hoisted at all government agencies and public places from 28-30 December, according to Government Spokesman Jakrapob Penkair.

"This is to mourn the death of all victims of tsunamis on Sunday", he stated.

A series of the giant tidal waves, caused by one of the world's strongest earthquakes in the Indonesian resort island of Sumatra, hit Thailand's southern coastlines on Sunday, leaving over 900 people dead, over 7,300 injured and over 1,000 still missing.

Among the deaths was Khun Poom Jensen, the only son of Princess Ubolratana Rajakanya--the eldest daughter of Their Majesties the King and Queen.

The country's tsunami-stricken provinces include Phuket, Phang-nga, Krabi, Trang, Ranong and Satun.

Other Asian and African countries, including Indonesia, Malaysia, India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Maldives and Somalia, were also stricken by the tsunamis, causing over 20,000 casualties totally now.

--TNA 2004-12-28

[Pseacraft]

If the LA Times is the source then I how doubt it automatically. The Times leaves a bunch to be desired in their reporting - lots of yellow journalism.

I can't see the Burma Plate moving 100 feet with out some serious damage to the northern end of Sumatra where the continental rift crosses the island. That would be some unimaginable damage to see the rift open up 100 feet as the Indian plate subducts beneath the Burma plate.

I can, however, see the entire 1000km long subduction zone move at once, which would explain how the seismic wave traveled "around" Sumatra and struck Phuket. Remember the originating quake's epicenter was south southwest of Sumatra, where as the Burma plate goes from Sumatra up to what was Burma and contains the Nicobar and Andaman Island groups. It's not a very large plate but it's a very interesting and now unfortunately a deadly one.

CD - No, they would not be able to reach Western Oz. To many land masses in the way. If the Tsunami was only affected by the epicenter of the big quake then Phuket wouldn't have been touched but since the entire plate shifted it opened pandoras box to the IO and eastern Andaman Sea. This image should help explain what I mean to some extent - but not about the Oz. Look at a larger map for that.

http://neic.usgs.gov/neis/bulletin/neic_slav_fig72hi-res.jpg

Eric

[lukamar]

I haven't heard anything from Western Australia... shouldn't the waves have radiated 360 degrees and hit there?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I was trying to find some information as well. Possibly AU is just far enough to the east of Sumatra that it is in a bit of a shadow and nothing too serious happened.

[george]

Corpses, debris cover beach resort

KHAO LAK: -- Corpses were lined up along roads and laid out on debris-strewn beaches in the resort of Ban Khao Lak in Phang Nga as rescue workers cleared the area a day after the killer tsunami crashed onto it on Sunday.

The bodies of dead Westerners, Asians and Thais - many with broken necks, arms and legs - were discovered under the debris of three collapsed buildings. Rescue teams had to use heavy construction drills to extract some of the corpses from under the rubble.

Felled trees, smashed vehicles and toppled buildings littered the ground everywhere. A three-kilometre stretch of beachside road lay buried under mud. Houses and bungalows had been swept out to sea.

After inspecting the area, Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra said some 700 people were feared dead here alone. The death toll across the six southern provinces ravaged by the tidal waves may mount to more than 1,000, he added.

A large number of people died in Khao Lak as the waves demolished several crowded hotels. The search for the missing and the removal of corpses remained fraught with difficulty as telecommunication links and transportation routes had suffered considerable damage.

The nationalities of numerous dead people remain unknown because officials have found no identification documents on them.

--The Nation 2004-12-28

[Pseacraft]

After looking at a better map of the IO I think the Oz just happens to sit at a benficial angle to the seismic wave. It looks more like a glancing blow if anything would have been felt down that way. Very interesting.

Eric

[mrvietnam2001]

Heard on the news just 30 minutes ago that more than 18,000 people still unaccounted for in Sri Lanka and the ambassador from that land expects death count to increase considerably.

Incredible

[cdnvic]

Two things that will be a big problem soon; Disease, and million(s) displaced and needing food/shelter, medical care.

Indonesia is now saying that there may be as many as 25000 dead there alone. Seems like every time I hit refresh the toll goes up.

http://www.cbc.ca/story/world/national/200...nami041227.html

I gave some $ to the Red Cross today. Wife is in Phuket and we'll help some locals out there too. Encourage everyone to do what they can.

If anyone's heading that way I thought that maybe disinfectent and/or bleach may be in real need. I imagine the sewage system must have contaminated alot of shops and homes.

cv

[Sao Jiang Mai]

Hi,

Don't mean to take anyone away from this site, but just wanted to say that The Nation's web site is getting seriously clogged, so we have been asked to set up a mirror site for them on our own web site, www.chiangmaicitylife.com and just click on the news link on the top of the page. You can read all of The Nation's news as it is updated simultaneously as The Nation's and Phuket Gazette's sites.

Such a tragedy. Chaing Mai's numerous magazines are all getting supplies together to send down south, so if anyone wants to contribute you can also contact us through our site.

Pim

[cdnvic]

Hi,

Don't mean to take anyone away from this site, but just wanted to say that The Nation's web site is getting seriously clogged, so we have been asked to set up a mirror site for them on our own web site, www.chiangmaicitylife.com and just click on the news link on the top of the page.  You can read all of The Nation's news as it is updated simultaneously as The Nation's and Phuket Gazette's sites.

Such a tragedy.  Chaing Mai's numerous magazines are all getting supplies together to send down south, so if anyone wants to contribute you can also contact us through our site. 

Pim

I've had trouble sometimes with The Nation's site, so thanks from all of us who've been glued to the story.

Maybe make a list of things you need contributed and post it as a guide for potential donors.

cv

[Sao Jiang Mai]

This is what we are told is needed:

Chemicals to get rid of smells

Toilet paper

Packets of noodles and canned goods

Underwear

Sanitary towels

Flip Flops

Milk

Drinking water

Blankets

Material to wrap bodies (although by the time our convoy gets there it may be too late)

Coffins

Formalin for corpses

Please drop off your donations at SP Publishing: 11/1 Soi 3, Bamrungburi Road, T. Phra Singh, A. Muang Chiang Mai or call 05333 814455-6. You can also drop your donations off at the Citylife offices at 3 Chomdoi Road, T. Suthep, CM. I believe that they are driving down Thursday night or thereabouts.

Pim

[Bangkokrecorder]

Please let me know what is needed and wehere it can be droped off in Bangkok. We would post the information on the Bangkokrecorder.com and in our newsletter.

Thanks

[Dradam]

I am surprised that the death tolls were not predicted immediately. No one has bothered to make a prediction. International Agencies are not likely to help when Thailand releases news of 4 people considered missing.

I am at Bangkok Phuket Hospital now and right from the start I could tell that the death toll would be massive. Why didn't someone say from the start, "Over 100,000 people likely dead."

The initial numbers of 12 are considered idiotic. I know a store owner in Phuket with 27 customers and workers that are now dead.

With Indonesia being one of the most populated countries in the world, I am guessing more than just a few hundred died there. It is a country of 250,000,000 people with substandard buildings struck by the largest earthquake in 40 years.

Does nobody have any inkling of the true seriousness of this?

The death tolls will continue to rise. Perhaps aid would be faster if someone simply made a likely prediction. Do they have to count bodies before they give a number? Seems a bit slow for the over 1 million people that will be predicted to be homeless.

And if 1,000,000 people are homeless, why is the number of dead so low? Or are we just seeing the tip of the iceberg right now.

[LaoPo]

Heard on the news just 30 minutes ago that more than 18,000 people still unaccounted for in Sri Lanka and the ambassador from that land expects death count to increase considerably.

Incredible

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

INDONESIA:

Also on the news just now: Authorities fear the death-toll could rise to 25.000...