Faith in the future outta the now

  Tsunami strikes Ao Nang, Thailand, 2004[1]


Phuket’s seashore after the tsunami strikes, 2004[2]

On December 26, 2004, the global news network broadcasted to the world the astonishing disaster taking place in Southern Asia.  The scenes of terrifying high waves rolling up to the seashore and the violent displacement of the ground caused by strong earthquakes were repeatedly played on TV.  This was the 2004 Indian Ocean Earthquake & Tsunami, the ninth deadliest natural disaster in modern history.  The final death toll in regions bordering the Indian Ocean amounted to 229,866[3], including tourists from all over the world.  This calamitous event aroused worldwide worry and concern about tsunamis.  What causes a tsunami?  What can people do to reduce the loss of life and property in the face of a tsunami?  In order to find possible solutions to these questions, it is important to understand how this particular event happened and what the potential causes of a tsunami are.

It was December 26, 2004, in Khao Lak, 50 miles north of Phuket along Thailand's western coast.  The morning was typically tropical - sunny and warm.  Tourists delightfully enjoyed the sunshine by the beach, listening to the melodious symphony composed by the resonant sounds of the waves.  Once in a while, they felt a slight tremor below the ground, but, having no idea about the severe earthquake which occurred at 07:58 in Indonesia, it went completely unnoticed.  Situated in an exotic resort, some of them were even tempted to try elephant-riding.  Thus, parents watched their children happily riding on the backs of elephants with the aid of local trainers.  Nevertheless, something went wrong with these elephants.  Although they had been very docile and tame animals, that day they exhibited apparent uneasiness and alert.  All of a sudden, the elephants began to wail terribly and broke the chains held tightly by their trainers; then, they rushed at high speed toward higher ground, panic-stricken[4].  While anxious parents were screaming and shouting, not knowing what they could do to save their children, people heard some noise from the sea, and the waves began to wash up ashore to and fro at a high frequency.  Some people were so moved by curiosity that they stepped into the water, trying to find out what was happening.  Then, at 09:50[5], the high waves arrived!  A series of powerful waves, whose heights measured approximately 30 meters, relentlessly slammed the seashore and killed countless people.  In that area alone, there were 3,950 confirmed deaths[6].  However, miraculously enough, those children, who still clung close to the elephants’ backs, survived.

The earthquake occurred on Dec. 26, 2004[7]

The above catastrophe was the lethal result of the combination of both an earthquake and a tsunami.  At 00:58:53 UTC (07:58:53 local time) on December 26, 2004, an undersea earthquake, which measured 9.0 on the Richter Scale, occurred, with an epicenter off the west coast of Sumatra, Indonesia.  In the following hours, the earthquake triggered a series of devastating tsunamis along the coasts of most lands bordering the Indian Ocean.  As OED defines the term, a tsunami is “a brief series of long, high undulations on the surface of the sea caused by an earthquake or similar underwater disturbance”[8].  Its causes can be attributed to earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, underwater explosions, landslides, large meteorite impacts, and nuclear tests at sea.  However, no matter what the cause is, a tsunami is indisputably the direct result of the abrupt deformation of land plates above or below water, and thus leads to the vertical displacement of the overlying water.  After that, as the displaced water mass moves under the influence of gravity and radiates across the ocean, a tsunami is formed[9].  

Generation of a tsunami[10]

A tsunami can come unexpectedly because while still out in the ocean, it presents a train of waves less than a meter high traveling at a tremendous speed.  As the wave approaches the shore and meets shallow water, it slows down and compresses; the energy from that wave is then directed upwards, increasing the wave’s height[11].  In most cases, severe earthquakes which occur at plate boundaries are particularly effective in generating tsunamis, which travel rapidly across an ocean basin and cause great destruction when they reach land.  On the other hand, landslides, volcanic eruptions, and massive explosions having contact with water also have the potential to create a tsunami.  Just like earthquakes, these phenomena speedily displace large volumes of water.  Nonetheless, it is noted that a tsunami caused by these mechanisms generally dissipates quickly and rarely affects coastlines distant from the source, owing to the small area of sea affected[12].  

Deep Ocean Tsunami Alarm System[13]

To summarize, a tsunami is the product of the sudden movement of the ocean floor resulting from an earthquake or other similar causes.  As a result of the incredibly enormous cost of the 2004 Indian Ocean Earthquake & Tsunami, worldwide scientists and governments have spared no effort to look for a way to prevent or predict a tsunami in advance.  Although up to the present day no methods can be used to perfectly satisfy this demand, there are indeed some warning signs of an upcoming tsunami.  For example, since earthquakes are often a cause of tsunamis, a network of sensors to detect the seismic waves of an earthquake near a body of water can probably provide useful in-time information and issue life-saving warnings[14].  Moreover, as the above selected scene during the attack of the 2004 tsunami exemplifies, animals are also able to offer early warnings of a tsunami.  Some scientists have speculated that animals may have the ability to sense subsonic Rayleigh waves from an earthquake and detect the danger of an impending tsunami minutes or hours before a tsunami comes ashore. 

In conclusion, tsunamis are an explicably natural phenomenon, whose damage can be reduced scientifically.  While investigations and research on the issue of tsunamis will undoubtedly keep being conducted in collaboration with experts in related fields, as laypeople of science, or geology in particular, we are also obliged to have the basic knowledge of tsunamis and stay concerned about them.  For example, from the above information, we are able to deduct that in order to survive tsunamis, we have to pay close attention to natural and official warnings, be in expectation of a series of waves, which may last for hours, and head for high ground or an upper floor of a building[15].  Remember: The more prepared we are, the readier we will be for an emergency.