Boxing Day will mark 10 years since the Indian Ocean tsunami struck, killing about 250,000 people and destroying hundreds of thousands of homes and livelihoods. It was a disaster on an unprecedented scale and one the world was not prepared for. Had early warning systems been in place, many lives could have been saved.
As a humanitarian worker I have experienced the aftermath of hurricanes and cyclones, floods and earthquakes, all over the world, but the scale of the 2004 tsunami – across more than 13 countries – was like nothing I had ever seen. Visiting affected areas I remember finding it difficult to take in just how destructive and powerful the waves had been. Where there had once been thriving communities with homes, schools, markets, churches and mosques, there was nothing except rubble – the concrete foundations of buildings washed away. But the worst thing was talking to people who had lost everything. They could not understand how the sea, which for most was a source of food and income, could hit them in such a devastating way.
http://www.theguardian.com/global-development/poverty-matters/2014/dec/09/natural-disaster-preparedness-indian-ocean-tsunami
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