Credit: PRD5

20th anniversary of deadliest tsunami commemorated across Asia

Thailand has joined other countries in the region in commemorating and honoring the memory and victims of the deadliest tsunami that struck the coasts along the Indian Ocean in the 2004 Boxing Day, whereas concerned organisations have vowed to improve disaster preparedness and response against the disaster

Hundreds of people and relatives of those who lost their lives in the tsunami on the Boxing Day of 2004 were seen gathering in the rituals organised to commemorate and honor the victims at a memorial ceremony in Ban Nam Khem, a small fishing village in Phang Nga province, where flowers were laid alongside a moment of silence at Ban Nam Khem Tsunami Memorial Park. The Thai government also hosts the two-day official events in the same province, where foreign diplomats and representatives from international organizations including ASEAN, executives and representatives from government agencies involved in disaster management, private sector, civil society groups, as well as affected communities, attended.

The tsunami affected six Andaman coastal provinces, be they Ranong, Phang Nga, Phuket, Krabi, Trang, and Satun. Over 8,000 people were reported dead or missing here, and the incident caused significant short- and long-term damage to infrastructure, the economy, society, and the environment. The disaster marked a turning point, driving the development of Thailand’s disaster management framework, which emphasizes preparedness, prevention, and mitigation of large-scale, complex, and unpredictable disasters, according to the Interior Ministry.

In Indonesia’s Aceh province, one of the hardest hit areas, AP reported that people had gathered in prayer and visited mosques and mass graves both in downtown and afar. Many were seen weeping as they placed flowers at a mass grave in Ulee Lheue village, where more than 14,000 unidentified tsunami victims are buried. As reported by AP, this is one of several mass graves in Banda Aceh, the capital of Indonesia’s northernmost province.

In India, hundreds gathered at Marina beach in the southern city of Chennai in Tamil Nadu state, where they poured milk into the sea to propitiate gods and offered flowers and prayers for the dead. And in Sri Lanka, survivors and relatives of tsunami victims gathered at the coastal village of Pereliya, where they laid flowers at a memorial that commemorates nearly 2,000 passengers who died when their train, the Queen of the Sea, was hit by the wave, according to AP.

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Seree Supratid, a leading climate and disaster management expert recalled his encounter with the incident and lesson learned for the country’s disaster management. His team and some leading tsunami experts and professors from Japan were among the first to visit the most affected areas to examine the damage and plan on the development of a tsunami early warning system and related infrastructure. 

“While surveying the areas, we met those who lost their loved ones as well as dead bodies which had scattered all over the places. I had to keep myself composed and stay calm. The incident just reminded me of the Buddha’s teaching that life is mortal. 

“The chance for such a disaster to happen is very little, or around 0.25%, but the incident just showed to us all that we should not be negligent as it’s too unbearable (for the great loss),” said Assoc. Prof. Dr. Seree.

A tsunami evacuation route sign in Indonesia. Credit: ITIC

Disaster preparedness and response

According to the UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR), a magnitude 9.1 submarine earthquake in Sumatra, Indonesia, occurred along the Indian Ocean subduction zone in the morning of December 26, 2004. As noted by the organization, the quake ruptured the greatest fault length of any recorded, spanning a distance of an estimated 1,500 km (900 miles)_longer than the US state of California.

It then triggered a massive tsunami that destroyed 800 km of the coastal areas of Aceh Province with inundation observed as far as 6 km inland. The tsunami then radiated outward in all directions with the speeds recorded of up to 800 km/h (500 mph), striking the coasts of Indonesia and India’s Andaman and Nicobar Islands within 20 minutes of the earthquake and the northeastern coast of Somalia in Africa seven hours later, with waves ranging in height from 3.4 to 9.4 metres. 

The incident was also observed on over 100 coastal water-level stations in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, making it a global tsunami. It was marked as the first global disaster of the 21st century and remains one of the deadliest disasters in recent human history, according to the UNDRR.

Over all, more than 227,000 lives were lost across 15 countries, and 1.6 million people were displaced, UNESCO noted.

The organisation, which pioneered and put in place the global network of tsunami warning systems, said the incident was “a harsh wake-up call”. Not only did the waves arrive within minutes, often without warning, but they also propagated across the entire Indian Ocean basin. 

In response to the great loss, UNESCO’s Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission, which today has 150 Member States, took decisive action. Building on its experience in establishing the Pacific Tsunami Warning System in 1965, the commission began creating a global warning and mitigation system to minimize the risk of a similar disaster ever happening again, according to the organisation.

Since, the Global Tsunami Warning System has spanned the Pacific, Indian Ocean, Mediterranean, Caribbean, and North-East Atlantic regions. When a significant sea-level disturbance is detected, it sends fast and accurate alerts to coastal communities, reducing response times and saving lives worldwide, UNESCO noted.

This alarm raising, however, is not enough, the organization noted. Communities also need to know what to do when waves occur. So, it also introduced the Tsunami Ready programme in 2015. The program recognizes and certifies communities that meet a standard level of tsunami preparedness based on 12 indicators, from mapping tsunami hazards to conducting regular evacuation drills. Up until present, communities in more than 30 countries are Tsunami Ready.

Bernardo Aliaga, Head of Tsunami Resilience at UNESCO, said the work focus has been on providing not just alerts but a comprehensive preparedness strategy through real-time monitoring, community education, and strengthened coastal defences. 

“We now know within minutes if a tsunami is imminent, and communities have the tools to act. This progress has been lifesaving,” said Mr. Aliaga.

As part of the United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development, UNESCO has also set bold new targets to better prevent and understand ocean hazards. Not only is it aiming to make 100% of at-risk communities Tsunami Ready by 2030, but it is also seeking to map 100% of the seabed and provide tsunami confirmation within 10 minutes or less for the most at-risk communities by 2030.

This research goes hand-in-hand with the deployment of cutting-edge tools such as Deep-ocean Assessment and Reporting of Tsunami (DART) buoys, which track tsunami waves in real-time and help provide more timely, accurate warnings, according to UNESCO.

“Disasters can strike at any time. Always stay alert by being aware of your surroundings, understanding potential hazards, recognizing natural warning signs, and knowing the evacuation routes to a safe place. You must stay strong,” said Ms. Syarifah Nargis, a survivor of the 2004 tsunami.

Credit: NOAA Center for Tsunami Research

Kamal Kishore, Special Representative of UN Secretary-General (SRSG) for Disaster Risk Reduction, said this tragedy was a turning point. It’s a wake-up call for humanity to do more, to understanding disaster risks, he said, adding that the disaster revealed the interconnectedness of modern societies and highlighted a blind spot in disaster risk management policy.

Following response and unprecedented cooperation among the international community, this then led to the development of the warning system in 18 months. However, there is an ongoing need to maintain and update warning systems, and ensure communities know how to respond. “An early warning system is not a one-time investment. These systems need to be practised and tested frequently,” said Mr. Kishore.

Mr. Kishore also calls for a holistic approach to resilience. He said it is important to recognize that it is not just about building stronger structures, it is also about better livelihoods and more cohesive and resilient societies. He pointed to the protective role of natural ecosystems, like mangroves, which mitigated tsunami impacts in places like Cuddalore district in Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu, India.

“A judicious mix of hard infrastructure and natural assets is essential for safeguarding coastal communities,” he noted, adding that affected countries also learned the importance of establishing strong disaster governance, including legislation concerning disaster management.

Credit: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information