A7.8 Writing: Expanding notes into a summary On 26 December, 2004 a 9 O magnitude earthquake struck off the Indonesian island of Sumatra,
triggering a tsunami that killed tens of thousands of people in Indian Ocean coastal communities. Here
are some statistics in note form of the human and environmental devastation left in its wako in Indonesia,
Time of main tremor: 07:58 local time on 26
December 2004. (00.58 GMT).
Epicentre locality: 250 km south-south-east
of Banda Aceh, Indonesia and 1,600 km
north-west ol Jakarta,
Overall Damage: Total damage of the
tsunami is estimated at $4.5 billion-$5
billion
63% of total damage and losses were
in housing, commerce, agriculture, and
fisheries, and transport vehicles and
services
25% of total damage and losses were in the public sector.
Helght and speed of tsunamis: In the open ocean, just 50 centimetres high but travelling at
up to 800 km/h. However, the waves grew and slowed as the sea got more shallow towards
coasts Waves were up to 10 metros on the coastline of Sumatra near the epicentre, 4 metres in
Thailand, Sri Lanka and Somalia
Distance waves travelled inland: Up to 2,000 metres.
Number of countries damaged: 13, including Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India, Thailand, Myanmar,
Malaysia, The Maldives and Somalia
Casualties: At least 226,000 dead, including 166,000 in Indonesia, 38,000 in Sri Lanka, 16,000 in
India 5,300 in Thailand and 5,000 foreign tourists.
Number of people injured: Over 500,000
Potential additional deaths from infectious diseases: 150,000.
Number of people affected: Up to 5 million people lost homes, or access to food and water
Number of children affected: Around a third of the dead are children, and 1.5 million have been
wounded, displaced or lost families.
Number of people left without the means to make a living: One million.
Date of last major tsunami in the Indian Ocean: 1945.
we
ite
Ask and answer questions in your group about the disaster, then make a summary of the
event using bullets points for the following headings:
Height of waves on Sumatran coastline
Distance waves travelled inland
Total number of houses destroyed
Total number of people dead
Total of people affected
Total number of children affected​