First Anniversary of the Indian Ocean Tsunami

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Today marks the first anniversary of the Indian Ocean Tsunami. More than 200, 000 people were either dead or missing. The rebuilding of lives and livelihood is still continuing. Below is a page lifted from the US Geological Survey department on the mega-earthquake and its ensuing tsunami.

Magnitude 9.0 - SUMATRA-ANDAMAN ISLANDS EARTHQUAKE
OFF THE WEST COAST OF NORTHERN SUMATRA
2004 December 26 00:58:53 UTC

Magnitude 9.0 Date-Time Sunday, December 26, 2004 at 00:58:53 (UTC) = Coordinated Universal Time Sunday, December 26, 2004 at 7:58:53 AM = local time at epicenter Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones Location 3.307° N 95.947° E Depth 30 km (18.6 miles) set by location program Region OFF THE WEST COAST OF NORTHERN SUMATRA Distances 255 km (155 miles) SSE of Banda Aceh, Sumatra, Indonesia 310 km (195 miles) W of Medan, Sumatra, Indonesia 1260 km (780 miles) SSW of BANGKOK, Thailand 1605 km (990 miles) NW of JAKARTA, Java, Indonesia Location Uncertainty horizontal +/- 5.6 km (3.5 miles); depth fixed by location program Parameters Nst=370, Nph=488, Dmin=644.5 km, Rmss=1.17 sec, Gp= 29°, M-type=teleseismic moment magnitude (Mw), Version=U Source USGS NEIC (WDCS-D) Event ID usslav

Felt Reports: This is the fourth largest earthquake in the world since 1900 and is the largest since the 1964 Prince William Sound, Alaska earthquake. In total, more than 283,100 people were killed, 14,100 are still listed as missing, and 1,126,900 were displaced by the earthquake and subsequent tsunami in 10 countries in South Asia and East Africa.The earthquake itself caused severe damage and casualties in northern Sumatra, Indonesia and in the Nicobar Islands, India. It was felt (IX) at Banda Aceh, (VIII) at Meulaboh and (IV) at Medan, Sumatra; (VII) at Port Blair, Andaman Islands, India; (III-V) in parts of Bangladesh, mainland India, Malaysia, Maldives, Myanmar, Singapore, Sri Lanka and Thailand. The tsunami caused more casualties than any other in recorded history and was recorded nearly world-wide on tide gauges in the Indian, Pacific and Atlantic Oceans. At least 108,100 people were killed and 127,700 are missing and presumed killed by the earthquake and tsunami in Indonesia. Tsunamis killed at least 30,900 people in Sri Lanka, 10,700 in India, 5,300 in Thailand, 150 in Somalia, 90 in Myanmar, 82 in Maldives, 68 in Malaysia, 10 in Tanzania, 3 in Seychelles, 2 in Bangladesh and 1 in Kenya. Tsunamis caused damage in Madagascar and Mauritius and caused minor damage at two places on the west coast of Australia. Seiches were observed in India and the United States and water level fluctuations occurred in wells in various parts of the United States. Subsidence and landslides were observed in Sumatra. A mud volcano near Baratang, Andaman Islands became active on December 28 and gas emissions were reported in Arakan, Myanmar. (last updated 2/15/05) [US Geological Survey]