the devastating waves of destruction
Brief introduction:
On Sunday, 26 December 2004, the 9.1-9.3 magnitude Indian Ocean earthquake occurred when the Indian Plate was subducted by the Burma Plate. A series of devastating tsunamis were triggered along the coasts of most landmasses bordering the Indian Ocean, killing over 230,000 people in fourteen countries, and engulfing coastal communities with waves up to 30 meters high. According to the National Earthquake Information Centre (NEIC), the Indian Ocean earthquake is the fourth largest earthquake to have ever been recorded on a seismograph since measurements started in 1899, tying with a 1952 earthquake that occurred in Kamchatka, Russia. The scientific community knows the earthquake as the Sumatra–Andaman earthquake and the resulting tsunami was given various names, including the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, South Asian tsunami, Indonesian tsunami, the Christmas tsunami and the Boxing Day tsunami.
The undersea earthquake had an epicentre barely off the west coast of Sumatra, causing Indonesia to be the hardest-hit country, followed by Sri Lanka, India, and Thailand. Most of the damage was caused by the tsunami that struck the coastal regions of the Aceh and to a much lesser extent the North Sumatra provinces. Ten meter tall waves passed the northern tip of the island to race south down the Straits of Malacca. The Aceh coast was reported to have a virtually destroyed coastline, with concrete pads as the remnants of substantial structures, and flimsier houses being battered into corrugated iron roofs.
An Acehnese man walks through the debris left behind by the massive tsunami in the town of Banda Aceh.
Source: http://earthpbl.wordpress.com/the-2004-boxing-day-and-earthquake-tsunami-indonesia/
People and Society:
There was a breakdown in civil governance and the government was forced to make crude estimates of the death toll, such as by counting the number of bodies in one mass grave and multiplying that by the number of such plots. In other cases, they estimated the population of a village, counted the survivors, in assumption that the rest were dead. The entire provincial government of Aceh, had been reportedly wiped out by the deaths of the provincial legislators, and many government workers, and the government declared that all administrative control would be handled directly from Jakarta.
Inconvenience in communication and transport:
In the immediate aftermath, one of the most pressing concerns was the inability to distribute sufficient aid due to a lack of accessible roads and a shortage of available helicopters. What little aid has reached the remote regions of Aceh province was trickling in primarily by boat and air.
The US consul in Medan in southern Sumatra reported that aid there was piling up at the airports of Medan and Banda Aceh because there were not enough trucks to transport it. In addition, aid for 200,000 people, including medical supplies, soap and tarpaulin, was being held at Jakarta for a day to clear customs.
The only road along the coast was disrupted due to the destruction of dozens of bridges and roads were washed away or blocked by mud, making relief efforts and communication along the western coastline increasingly difficult. A number of towns on the west coast were also cut off from road from any airport or port, and relief efforts therefore required the use of helicopter or boat. In the town of Meulaboh in Aceh, for instance, 99 percent of the bridges were swept away and 60 percent of asphalt roads were covered with mud. In addition to that, an Indonesian navy ship bringing aid supplies to Meulaboh was forced to turn away after it was unable to dock because the port facilities were destroyed.
According to the United Nation’s Children Fund, only the airfield on the outskirts of Banda Aceh was properly functioning, as most of the other small gravel airfields were damaged by the earthquake and tsunami.
Communication on the Nias Island was hampered due to the damage of telecommunication infrastructures, where phone lines were broken and radio networks were down due to the bad weather. The infrastructure damage severely hampered the distribution of aid.
All in all, there were significant bottlenecks created by lack of infrastructure and red tape. Due to the destruction of roads and facilities, the inaccessibility of the devastation areas have inadvertently caused an escalation in the death toll.
Sanitation and hygiene (poverty):
The unmanageably high number of corpses strewn all over the cities and countrysides, limited resources and time for identifying bodies, were a threat of cholera, diphtheria and many other water-borne diseases. This prompted emergency workers to create makeshift mass graves, as more than 31,000 people have been confirmed killed in the capital of Banda Aceh alone, and over one thousand bodies found on the streets were placed in mass graves without waiting for identification as officials quickly try to keep the sanitation situation from worsening.
Economy (poverty):
Seaside limestone cliffs directed the tsunami waves towards the town of Leupung, which had an estimated population of ten thousand. Not only were there about 200-700 survivors left, there was also no trace of the limestone after the tsunami. In coastal areas, a huge amount of fishing gear and supplies were destroyed. The tsunami also made tourists hesitant to stay in the area.The tsunami had a devastating effect on the economy, as many of Indonesia’s natural resources and material supplies were destroyed. On top of that, the tourism industry was temporarily destroyed, and a big portion of finance had to be channelled into the repair of infrastucture and equipment.
Destruction of homes (poverty):
Many small villages were completely destroyed, with a dwindling number of survivors. Villages such as Gleebruk (southwest of Banda Aceh) and Teunom (on the island of Sumatra) were completely wiped out. Towns such as Calang (district capital) were also badly hit, with whole hills being washed away as a result of the trail of destruction extending two kilometers inland from the coast. Due to these devastating effect, Calang was relocated further inland when it was rebuilt. Meulaboh had a population of 120,000 before the tsunami, however, after a series of seven waves struck the town, an estimated 40,000 people were killed, and most parts of the city were destroyed, resulting of over 50,000 people losing their homes in the region. The staggering numbers have overwhelmed the government and there was little sign of coordination with regional authorities in relocating these tsunami victims to temporary refugee homes. Only about 5000 were able to take refuge at Meulaboh College. An Indonesian navy ship bringing aid supplies to Meulaboh was forced to turn away after it was unable to dock because the port facilities were destroyed.
Military defence:
Many soldiers were lost to the tsunami and this left Indonesia weaker than ever before, resulting in the Indonesian military calling for a ceasefire with rebels (from the Free Aceh Movement), so that humanitarian aid could reach survivors. Fifteen thousand troops who were deployed into the region to fight the upsurgence of rebellion were dispatched to render assistance and to search for survivors. However, many soldiers and their families were themselves killed. The Indonesian government declared three days of national mourning.
Violence and discord:
Although Indonesia was the first and worst hit of countries in the region, it was the last to begin receiving relief aid. Looting of food was reported throughout this northmost province of Sumatraas aid has proved slow to arrive.
Environment:
The tsunami destroyed coral reefs, mangrove forests and seaweed beds. Though little could be done to reverse the damage done to the coral reefs, an effort was made to replant the mangrove forest and enforce protective laws, as mangrrove forests provide an important spawning area for fish.
Coral reefs, in addition to sandy beaches, are a major draw of tourism. The impact of the December tsunami on coral reefs varies drastically across regions. Though statistics relating to Indonesia cannot be found, a substantial piece of evidence is a survey by the tourism and dive industries in Thailand shows 20% of the reefs have been destroyed, while roughly 60% were knocked over because of disturbance to supporting sands. If they are returned to upright positions, the coral may survive; if not, up to 40% of the reefs could be lost.
Debris littering the coastal zone, from everything like cars to concrete were washed out to sea, breaking uo the coral reefs, before being washed on shore. The debris caused a severe hindrance in rescue work, and much effort had to be put into the clearance of the debris.
Ecological impact of the Asian tsunami 2004 will take a long time and significant resources to assess and regenerate. Hours before the IndianOcean tsunami, people reported seeing elephants and flamingos heading for higher ground. Dogs and zoo animals refused to leave their shelters. Source: http://www.tsunami2004.net/tsunami-2004-ecological-impacts/
Brief Sum-up:
The tsunami has a negative long-term impact on Indonesia, and many other countries. In addition to the huge loss of life and huge impact on the environment, the tsunami put a huge dent in Indonesia’s economy. There was also contamination of drinking water and destruction of coral reefs, forests, and other many other natural features.
However, Indonesia is surrounded by four major tectonic plates, the Pacific, the Eurasian, the Australian and the Philippine plates. All these major tectonic plates and their subplates are presently active. Major earthquakes in the semi-enclosed seas can generate destructive local tsunamis in the Sulu, Banda and Java Seas, causing Indonesia to be vulnerable to natural disasters.
Sources:
http://www.drgeorgepc.com/Tsunami2004Indonesia.html
http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=13026&Cr=tsunami&Cr1=#.UymY-xYVrHg
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2004_Indian_Ocean_earthquake_and_tsunami