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		Earthquake/Tsunami damage and deaths still being counted (news.bbc.co.uk)		539
		More: Followup

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16805 clicks; posted to Main » on 27 Dec 2004 at 10:45 AM | Favorite | share:

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kbd517		2004-12-27 10:47:03 AM

Those poor people...

wristbandgoth		2004-12-27 10:47:09 AM

jesus.

The Nim Elf		2004-12-27 10:47:23 AM

surf's up dude?

/aisle seat please

farpointer		2004-12-27 10:48:08 AM

My friend is there. Just got an email reply that she's OK. Whewwwww!!!!!

/Sleep easier tonight!

The Nim Elf		2004-12-27 10:48:23 AM

This is horrible. Surprised this isn't getting more media attention. Hard to believe there was no warning.

CDMaker		2004-12-27 10:49:00 AM

In the Phuket Gazette there is a bar for sale.. 7million bahar
Poor guy posted in on Dec 24.

BlorfMaster		2004-12-27 10:50:53 AM

man, thats gotta suck.

course, I sat through 3 hurricanes, so, i had mine, thank you.

Raging_Rabbit		2004-12-27 10:51:02 AM

CDMaker

I'm thinking that it's a wet bar, right? Hee hee

/sorry

tidal		2004-12-27 10:51:13 AM

those poor poeple... over 10,000 DEAD... I would rather be burned alive than drown...That has to be the worst way to die.

nicedream		2004-12-27 10:51:25 AM

Latest body count from cnn says over 23,000.

:(

phoxxy		2004-12-27 10:51:49 AM

The Nim Elf:

This is horrible. Surprised this isn't getting more media attention. Hard to believe there was no warning.

Asian Gov'ts Could Have Warned People (pops)

dsmo		2004-12-27 10:51:56 AM

Has anyone seen news giving the names of the Americans killed in the tidal wave?

A guy I work for during the fall owns a beach house in Phuket (I think he lives there), and another guy that I know was visiting him over Christmas.

morrisonsl		2004-12-27 10:52:11 AM

This sure is one crazy natural event. A couple of hundred people died in Somalia last night when it finally hit them.

Eat More Possum		2004-12-27 10:52:17 AM

I figure the toll will pass 30,000 before it is all said and done.

/sad

Dumle		2004-12-27 10:52:20 AM

The Nim Elf

This is horrible. Surprised this isn't getting more media attention. Hard to believe there was no warning.

Too few Americans involved for it to be interesting perhaps? (guessing you meant U.S media coverage seeing as you're in Des Moines)

Here, they have run extra 1-hour newscasts throughout the day covering every possible angle, with updates as they come.

The Nim Elf		2004-12-27 10:52:38 AM

LACK OF WARNING SYSTEM
http://www.cnn.com/2004/WORLD/asiapcf/12/27/asia.warningsystem.ap/

"Unfortunately, we have no equipment here that can warn about tsunamis," said Budi Waluyo, an official with Indonesia's Meteorology and Geophysics Agency. "The instruments are very expensive and we don't have money to buy them."

Too expensive? At what price? Give me a break!

KentuckyBob		2004-12-27 10:53:00 AM

Not to sound callous, but I betting it will hit 30,000 soon. Don't ever underestimate the planets' ability to flick us off it like a flea.

the_gospel_of_thomas		2004-12-27 10:53:33 AM

OMFG I woke up and read 22,000! that is INSANE - these poor people - my stomach is in a knot.

arched		2004-12-27 10:53:45 AM

Based on previous disasters it will probably reach 40K.

New Zealand Herald reports that in Los Angeles, the head of the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said US officials who detected the undersea quake tried frantically to get a warning out about the tsunami. But there was no official alert system in the region, said Charles McCreery, director of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's center in Honolulu.

"It took an hour and a half for the wave to get from the earthquake to Sri Lanka and an hour for it to get ... to the west coast of Thailand and Malaysia," he said. "You can walk inland for 15 minutes to get to a safe area."

"We tried to do what we could," he said. "We don't have contacts in our address book for anybody in that part of the world."

morrisonsl		2004-12-27 10:54:01 AM

Dumle:

Here, they have run extra 1-hour newscasts throughout the day covering every possible angle, with updates as they come.

Same here. I find it rather distasteful to imagine showbusiness news going on in the U.S. media, is this really getting little attention over there?

phoxxy		2004-12-27 10:54:05 AM

tidal:

those poor poeple... over 10,000 DEAD... I would rather be burned alive than drown...That has to be the worst way to die.

I doubt there's too much in the way of "drowning". More than likely the force of the wave hitting you and being slammed against objects around you would probably knock you out if it didn't kill you first.

PopDog2		2004-12-27 10:54:07 AM

There was plenty of warning for the tsunamis. Unfortunately, the countries that were hit did not believe spending money to build a system to warn it's citizens was important. Maybe they didn't think it could happen to them.

Still, if your country is only a few feet above sea level, you're a dumbass if you don't devote resources to something like this.

Funny thing is - the Maldives, which were hit pretty bad by this, had an article on CNN's webpage a week or so ago about the NEW island they built next to their capitol. It was only mere feet above sea level and the government spokesman stated the only real danger is flooding from various ocean events, but he hoped that wouldn't happen.

Oh, Noes!!

BrusselSprouts		2004-12-27 10:54:53 AM

"...killing about 23,000 people."

Sri Lanka: 11,000 dead
Indonesia: 4,500 dead
India: 3,500 dead
Thailand: 839 dead
Malaysia: 44 dead
Maldives: 32 dead
Burma: 30 dead
Bangladesh: 2 dead

They're documenting down to the single digits, and I count 19,947. No question this is a tragedy, but why doesn't the math add up?

/don't say it's an estimate, because that same estimate yesterday was around 3000. Useless estimates, yay!

The Nim Elf		2004-12-27 10:55:14 AM

Dumle
Not enough attention in general. You are probably right. Not enough interest for US. Its bull shiat. Reggie White's death got more coverage out here than this. The lack of warning for these poor people may be the biggest injustice of our life time. Unbelievable.

JesseSarpy		2004-12-27 10:55:17 AM

The Death toll is now over 20,000, and I wouldn't be surprosed to see that number double. Most of the dead are poor villagers whose entire communities were wiped from the face of the Earth. We may never know the true toll.

shreen		2004-12-27 10:55:59 AM

Nim Elf, there's an article on CNN (pops) that explains why they weren't warned. In short: The U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration does track these events for many other countries but the buoys used to warn them are expensive and paid for by the country it serves. Since there aren't many tsunamis in that part of the world and the buoys are so expensive they didn't have them...I think they might change that now. There's another article on CNN where a guy describes (also pops) seeing the tide pulled out before the wall of water came at them. Holy shiat! Could you imagine that experience. He and his wife lived through it -- that's just unreal.

morrisonsl		2004-12-27 10:56:20 AM

BrusselSprouts: No question this is a tragedy, but why doesn't the math add up?

Because they can't even contact dozens of islands that may or may not have been totally washed away.

Jeff		2004-12-27 10:56:42 AM

Lots of large aftershocks too:
12/27 5.9 NORTHERN SUMATRA, INDONESIA
12/27 6.3 NORTHERN SUMATRA, INDONESIA
12/27 5.4 OFF W COAST OF NORTHERN SUMATRA
12/27 6.1 ANDAMAN ISLANDS, INDIA REGION
12/27 6.0 NORTHERN SUMATRA, INDONESIA
12/26 5.8 MINDANAO, PHILIPPINES
12/26 6.2 OFF W COAST OF NORTHERN SUMATRA
12/26 5.6 OFF W COAST OF NORTHERN SUMATRA
12/26 5.6 NICOBAR ISLANDS, INDIA REGION
12/26 5.7 OFF W COAST OF NORTHERN SUMATRA
12/26 5.9 ANDAMAN ISLANDS, INDIA REGION
12/26 5.9 OFF W COAST OF NORTHERN SUMATRA
12/26 5.5 ANDAMAN ISLANDS, INDIA REGION
12/26 5.4 ANDAMAN ISLANDS, INDIA REGION
12/26 6.3 ANDAMAN ISLANDS, INDIA REGION
12/26 6.2 ANDAMAN ISLANDS, INDIA REGION
12/26 5.5 NICOBAR ISLANDS, INDIA REGION
12/26 6.5 NICOBAR ISLANDS, INDIA REGION
12/26 5.8 ANDAMAN ISLANDS, INDIA REGION
12/26 5.7 ANDAMAN ISLANDS, INDIA REGION
12/26 5.7 ANDAMAN ISLANDS, INDIA REGION
12/26 7.3 NICOBAR ISLANDS, INDIA REGION
12/26 6.1 ANDAMAN ISLANDS, INDIA REGION
12/26 5.9 OFF W COAST OF NORTHERN SUMATRA
12/26 6.0 ANDAMAN ISLANDS, INDIA REGION
12/26 5.8 ANDAMAN ISLANDS, INDIA REGION
12/26 5.8 OFF W COAST OF NORTHERN SUMATRA
12/26 5.9 NICOBAR ISLANDS, INDIA REGION
12/26 5.8 ANDAMAN ISLANDS, INDIA REGION
12/26 5.8 NORTHERN SUMATRA, INDONESIA
12/26 9.0 OFF THE WEST COAST OF NORTHERN SUMATRA

AuntofDogface		2004-12-27 10:56:50 AM

Damn! Mother Nature can sure be a biatch when she wants to be. The victims and their loved ones are in my thoughts.

TheAnusThatAteManhattan		2004-12-27 10:57:16 AM

arched - Now that TRULY sucks.

Property loss is devastating, but you can rebuild. All these people are lost forever.

It sucks that often it takes something awful like this for change to occur. Here's hoping they get a proper alarm system worked out now.

Dym		2004-12-27 10:57:37 AM

About the lack of warning systems. Let's put this into perspective. This has never happened in that region before. The last time there was ever anything similar was 1833.

Zyklon B. Goode		2004-12-27 10:57:47 AM

How many see this as the handiwork of God? Not many.
Now if it were a god damned stain on a water tower or a farking grilled cheese sammitch...

Confabulat		2004-12-27 10:58:00 AM

We seem kinda silly whining about those hurricanes now.

Neo_freff		2004-12-27 10:58:17 AM

The Nim Elf
This is horrible. Surprised this isn't getting more media attention.

I've been watching CNN all morning, and that has been the only thing on for the last hour.

TheRealist		2004-12-27 10:58:45 AM

All the Earth is vibrating.

man that's catchy.

morrisonsl		2004-12-27 10:58:54 AM

Dym:

About the lack of warning systems. Let's put this into perspective. This has never happened in that region before. The last time there was ever anything similar was 1833.

I totally agree. And let's remember most of these places have trouble feeding their people, planning for extremely unlikely natural disasters isn't much of a priority in that situation.

We keep getting word of all kinds of horrible things that could conceivably happen, from asteroids to tsunamis and alien invasions, but when you're living hand to mouth that all seems rather irrelevant.

qbert980		2004-12-27 10:59:13 AM

Butterflies everywhere can be heard saying "Wasn't me. . ."

/kidding
//hangs head in shame

The Nim Elf		2004-12-27 11:00:19 AM

Dym
Perhaps you are right, although previous earthquakes indicate that tsunamis are possible. I would bet that 99% of those people didn't even know there was an eathquake. At the very least, put up some flags that indicate a tidal wave is possible. I find their goverment's lack of preparation certifiable.

palexc		2004-12-27 11:00:31 AM

The humanitarian crisis following this is going to be even worse. The planet better get off it's ass and do something quick or that death toll is just going ot keep climbing.

Demetrius		2004-12-27 11:01:21 AM

For anyone that's interested in helping out, AmeriCares is an excellent organization. They have low overhead, and have just about the best bang for the buck donated.

Click here for more information.

grunge		2004-12-27 11:01:49 AM

I have not seen it reported on a single network over the weekend. I did see however about an hour of football news, and another hour of foxnews interview religious leaders. As I was watching I was waiting for someone to mention this but noone did.

morrisonsl		2004-12-27 11:02:05 AM

One thing people aren't paying attention to yet but will possibly mean the end of sustainable life in places like the Maldives: salt.

The Romans used to salt the fields of civilizations they wanted to destroy, because it prevents anything from growing for generations. Effectively this is what has happened to much of the agricultural land in the areas affected by the tsunamis.

Colgate		2004-12-27 11:02:23 AM

The earth is but one ball in the benwa of life. When it vibrates, some assholes are tickled.

moops		2004-12-27 11:02:39 AM

This is horrible. Surprised this isn't getting more media attention.

That's because we so many ethnocentric morans, give or take, in our country. this is barely a blip on fox news, but they sure had a lot to say about the racist preacher reggie white.

lots of people in places like ohio that are giving themselves ulcers when there will be a terrorist attack in dayton, but they couldn't find thailand on a map.

my roomate is currently in oman, and apparently that country was shielded from this.

innereardistortion		2004-12-27 11:02:55 AM

- 9.0 earthquake.
- Poorest, least disaster-proof area of the entire planet.
- Most densely populated area of the entire plant.

Somebody go shoot Jerry Brucheimer before he worsens this by producing a movie around it.

Sadly, this is the sort of problem we'll run into more often as overcrowding and overpopulation continue. The earth *can* and *will* shake us off like a bad case of dandruff. The more people who live in super-crowded super-poor areas like this, especially on coastal areas, are concentrated so that the natural disasters can do even more damage.

EatHam		2004-12-27 11:03:21 AM

grunge: I have not seen it reported on a single network over the weekend.

It's been pretty constant on CBS, NBC, ABC, Fox, CNN, and Headline News. I don't know what network you're watching.

Doubletwist-		2004-12-27 11:03:39 AM

I'm in the US and quite annoyed by the total lack of coverage here. As far as the radio is concerned, I heard a brief mention of it last night as I drove home. Basically about the same air-time as they would give when they mention that say, Tony Blair is visiting the white house.
This morning, I heard not a single peep about this tragedy. NPR is playing an interview with someone who wrote a book about Florence Nightingale. The talk show stations are airing their annoying call-in shows about whether there is enough Christianity in America. Not a word about the sudden death of 20,000+ humans.

Sad...

DistendedPendulusFrenulum		2004-12-27 11:03:55 AM

No AM radio? How likely is that?

.

Thera		2004-12-27 11:03:57 AM

Ouch.

ChairmanKaga		2004-12-27 11:04:33 AM

dsmo

A guy I work for during the fall owns a beach house in Phuket (I think he lives there), and another guy that I know was visiting him over Christmas.

/Phuket + Fark = Farket
//Amused by funny names and not 23,000 deaths.

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