Devastating earthquake and tsunami in Southeast Asia (2004). Consequences of the tsunami in Thailand

Many people remember the tsunami that swept through Southeast Asia in 2004, killing 400,000 people. This happened before the New Year and became a real disaster for local residents and vacationers. Here we remember the tragic events that occurred during tsunami in Thailand 2004 year.

Tsunami in Thailand 2004: how it happened

The cause of the super-powerful tsunami in Thailand was an earthquake in Indian Ocean. As a result, 18 countries were affected by the wave. The underwater shock occurred on December 26 at 7.58 local time and went almost unnoticed. This led to huge casualties tsunami in Thailand 2004 year. After 2 hours, the first wave approached the Thai coast. The magnitude of the earthquake was 9.1 - 9.3 points (it was recognized as the 3rd most powerful in history), and the epicenter was only 160 km from Sumatra. As a result, some small islands moved as much as 20 meters, and the Earth’s rotation around its axis even slightly accelerated.

The height of the wave was 15 meters and washed away almost everything in its path: trees were torn out, buildings were destroyed, cars were washed away from parking lots, boats and larger vessels were thrown ashore. The water that flooded the beaches of Thailand, including the popular Patong, went several hundred meters deep onto the land, and in some places went 2 kilometers deep. 2004 Thailand Tsunami, which came the first time, washed away almost the entire infrastructure, but after that the wave returned twice more and completed the destruction.

2004 Thailand Tsunami: Devastation

Many escaped in the mountains, and those who did not make it climbed onto the roofs of hotels. The islands of Phuket, Phi Phi (the island was completely submerged), and the provinces of Krabi and Phangan were hit the hardest. About 8,500 people, citizens of 40 countries, died in Thailand.

The same wave reached India in 90 minutes, and the African coast in Somalia in 7 hours. Destruction was noted even in South Africa in Port Elizabeth. Even the state of Kerala in India, which is also known for its bloody rains, was affected, although it is located on the west coast and not the east. The total number of victims ranges from 250 to 300 thousand.

This tsunami in Thailand became the largest in 80 years and is among the TOP 10 most destructive in history.

Five years ago on December 26, 2004, an undersea earthquake of 9.3 magnitude shook the Indian Ocean, causing huge waves that washed over the coasts of 13 countries, leaving behind 230,000 dead. This natural disaster ranked fifth in terms of the number of human lives lost. About 45,000 of the dead were never found. Five years have passed - restoration work is still ongoing - 140,000 houses, 1,700 schools, 3,800 temples and 3,700 km of roads have been built. This issue contains photographs of survivors, recovery efforts, and several before and after photos.

(Total 32 photos)

An Aceh man cries during a prayer for tsunami victims on the fifth anniversary of the 2004 earthquake and tsunami on December 26, 2009 in Banda Aceh, Indonesia. Aceh suffered the most as main city The province was closest to the epicenter. The tsunami reached it first and caused about 130,000 deaths. Across 11 countries, 230,000 people died, making it one of the worst disasters in history. (Ulet Ifansasti/Getty Images)

2. Foreign tourists who chose a beach holiday during the first wave of six waves of the tsunami at Hat Rai Lay beach near Krabi in southern Thailand on December 26, 2004. (AFP/AFP/Getty Images)

4. a) Five years later, a city resident collects grass for his goats in the same place on December 4, 2009. (REUTERS/Beawiharta)

People pray and release offerings into the ocean during a ceremony to mark the fifth anniversary of the Indian Ocean tsunami at Ulhi Lheu Beach in Banda Aceh, Aceh province, Indonesia, December 20, 2009. (AP Photo/Heri Juanda)

12. In this photo taken on December 6, 2009, children perform a traditional dance at an orphanage in the capital of Aceh, Banda Aceh. Of the total tsunami deaths (230,000 people), more than half died in Aceh on the island of Sumatra, leaving at least 5,200 orphans with whom child psychologists worked for a long time. (AP Photo/Achmad Ibrahim)

15. Thai authorities make a final check of a tsunami buoy at Cape Panwa on Phuket island, southern Thailand, December 1, 2009. Five years after the tsunami devastated the Asian coastline, experts fear a new generation of coastal residents will be ill-prepared for another huge wave as memories of the tragedy fade. (PORNCHAI KITTIWONGSAKUL/AFP/Getty Images)

17. Dutch tourist Hans Kuiper photographs images of foreign tourists who wanted to celebrate the New Year in a resort hotel and died as a result of the 2004 tsunami. Photo taken at Bang Muang Cemetery in Phang Nga province north of Phuket in Thailand on December 26, 2009. (REUTERS/Chaiwat Subprasom)

Tsunami survivor Abhilash Jeyaraj, also known as Child 81, sits on a chair at home waiting to go to school in Kurukkalmadam in Batticaloa district on November 23, 2009. The 2004 tsunami catapulted "Baby 81" to international fame, but the parents of the boy, who was just two months old at the time of the tragedy, say the fame only brought them unhappiness and unwanted attention. A surviving child was found in the wreckage on the coast of Sri Lanka. Soon after, nine pairs of parents came for him, each claiming that the child was theirs. (REUTERS/Andrew Caballero-Reynolds)

Red Cross volunteers sit with open umbrellas depicting the faces of smiling orphans left behind by the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami at the fifth anniversary of the disaster at the Tsunami Museum in Banda Aceh on December 26, 2009. (REUTERS/Beawiharta)

Tsunamis are giant and long ocean waves that arise as a result of an underwater volcanic eruption or earthquakes with a magnitude greater than 7. During an underwater earthquake, sections of the ocean floor shift, creating a series of destructive waves. Their speed can reach 1000 km/h, and their height can be up to 50 m and above. About 80% of tsunamis occur in the Pacific Ocean.

Thailand Tsunami (2004), Phuket

December 26, 2004 - this day went down in history as the day of a tragedy of gigantic proportions, which took a huge number of lives. At this time, the tsunami occurred in Phuket (2004). Patong, Karon and other beaches suffered the most. At 07:58 local time, a powerful earthquake with a magnitude of up to 9.3 occurred at the bottom of the Indian Ocean near the island of Simelue. It caused a big series giant waves, which people around the world still remember with fear and regret. Water killers took the lives of about 300 thousand people in a few hours and caused terrible destruction on the shores of Asia.

Thailand was one of the countries that suffered huge losses from the onslaught of the tsunami. The disaster struck western part coast. In 2004, the tsunami on the beaches of Phuket completely destroyed the infrastructure: hotels, clubs, bars. These were the most famous vacation spots among tourists all over the world - Karon, Patong, Kamala, Kata. According to general estimates, several hundred people died.

The history of the beginning of the great catastrophe

It was a normal morning, when many were still in bed, but some were already relaxing on the beach. Powerful tremors occurred at the bottom of the ocean, which led to the displacement of water. The underground impacts were completely imperceptible, and therefore no one even suspected the beginning of the disaster. At a speed of 1000 km/h, the waves rushed to the shores of Thailand, Sri Lanka, Indonesia and Somalia. This is how the Phuket tsunami began (2004). Karon Beach was among the places that suffered the most.

As we approached land, the height of the water flow in some places was about 40 meters. The tsunami in Phuket in 2004 had a very powerful destructive force, even exceeding the explosion of the atomic bomb in Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

About an hour after the underwater earthquake, strange phenomena began to occur on land: somewhere the water moved 1.5 km away from the shore, the sound of the surf stopped, animals and birds began to run away in fear (to the mountains). People did not immediately understand the essence of the danger and collected shells from the shallow ocean bottom. Since the 15 m high rogue wave did not have a white crest, it was not immediately noticed from the shore. When the Phuket tsunami (2004) hit the beach, it was too late to escape. With incredible speed, the waves destroyed everything in their path. Their destructive power allowed them to penetrate two kilometers inland.

When the movement of the wave stopped, the water rushed back very quickly. The greatest danger was not the water itself, but debris, trees, cars, concrete, reinforcement, billboards - everything that threatened to take a person’s life.

Characteristics of the 2004 Phuket tsunami

The site is the western tip of the Pacific earthquake belt, where approximately 80% of the world's largest earthquakes occurred. There was a shift of the Indian plate under the Burma plate, where the length of the fault was about 1200 kilometers. The disaster was incredibly large, since the Indian plate on the ocean floor was common with the territory of Australia, and the Burmese plate is considered part of the Eurasian one. The plate fracture divided into two phases with a gap of several minutes. The interaction speed was two kilometers per second, and a rift was created in the direction of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

There has not been such a destructive tsunami in Phuket for eighty years. Scientists say it will be centuries before the joined plates begin to move again. According to seismologists, the tsunami in Phuket (2004) gained strength, which was equal to the energy of five megatons per hour.

Consequences of the tragedy

The consequences of the disaster were simply terrible. Phuket after the tsunami (2004) is a terrifying picture. The cars were in the hotel lobby, the boat was on the roof of the house, and the tree was in the pool. This is what the water did. The buildings that stood on the coast were completely destroyed. Thailand's paradise - Phuket - was turned into hell by the tsunami (2004), a photo of which can be seen in the article. Bodies could be seen from under the wreckage of furniture, houses and cars. dead people and animals. The survivors were in such a state of shock that they could not leave the scene of the tragedy. The tsunami in Thailand in 2004 (Phuket) was not a one-time event: the wave returned twice and took the lives of 8.5 thousand people. One of elite islands Phi Phi was completely submerged. Large quantity the victims are children.

Elimination of the consequences of the disaster

Immediately after the water left, rescuers began to take measures to eliminate the consequences. The military and police were quickly mobilized and camps for the victims were established. Since the island has a very hot climate, the risk of infectious contamination of water and air increased every hour. Therefore, it was necessary to find all the dead, identify them if possible and bury them. The mobilized groups worked for days without rest. Most countries of the world did not remain indifferent and sent human and material resources to help the Thai residents.

The approximate death toll in Phuket during the 2004 tsunami was 8 thousand 500 people, where 5 thousand 400 were foreign citizens from more than forty countries. It was the deadliest tsunami ever known.

Conclusions of scientists and specialists

After the disaster, it was necessary to analyze the sources of the tragedy and take safety measures. The Thai authorities have joined an international program to monitor phenomena in the ocean depths. Residents were alerted in the event of danger, and training was provided on the rules of behavior during the siren signal. The target group of such measures was not only local residents, but also tourists.

Enormous efforts were expended to restore the infrastructure of the social sphere and tourism. Buildings were built on the island from strong reinforced concrete, where the walls were erected parallel or at an oblique angle to the expected movement of the tsunami.

Years after the tragedy

Today, thirteen years have passed since the tragedy, which claimed approximately three hundred thousand lives and left pain and suffering in the souls of people all over the world. During this time, Thailand was able to fully restore the affected areas. A year after the tragedy, residents who lost a roof over their heads were provided with new housing. The buildings were constructed from materials that could withstand natural disasters in times of danger.

Today, tourists have practically forgotten the tragedy that happened and, with even greater enthusiasm, go on vacation to the shores of the kingdom. After the tsunami in Phuket (2004), Karon Beach, Patong and all other popular places became even more beautiful. The best buildings and structures were built. And only warning signs about the danger return people to that time of natural disaster.

Russians who survived the tsunami

Phuket in 2004, Patong and other tourist beaches are vacation spots and many Russian tourists. After the tragedy, emergency staff worked around the clock at the Russian embassy in Bangkok. The headquarters received about 2,000 phone calls in one day. The first list included about 1,500 Russians who may have been on the island during the disaster.

Until January 6, there was a search for every person on the list. From the very first day of the tragedy, all the victims were helped by volunteers - Russians living in Thailand, as well as employees of travel agencies. Gradually, survivors were found, and at the same time, a list was drawn up for evacuation on a Russian Emergency Situations Ministry flight. In this way, about eighty Russians and citizens of neighboring countries were sent home.

A list of missing persons was also compiled. On January 8, the compilation of the list was completed, and the search continued. It took about a year for the victims to be identified. Later, people began to be considered no longer missing, but dead.

Is it possible to come to Thailand after a global catastrophe?

After the Thai authorities and American scientists installed the world's largest deep-sea system for early detection of tsunamis. Notification of an approaching disaster occurs several hours before the disaster begins. Also, after the tragedy, a system was developed to evacuate people away from the giant waves. Even on an island as small as Phi Phi, it is possible to evacuate to the mountains.

The system, which sounds the alarm in advance, was tested on April 11, 2012, when a tsunami occurred again (everyone was evacuated; this tragedy did not bring such terrible consequences as in 2004). In addition, scientists predict that it will be decades before the next natural disaster occurs.

For those who are still afraid to relax near the sea, experienced travelers It is advised to go to the north of the country, where the worst thing that can happen is the Chao Prai or Mekong rivers overflowing their banks. This is quite unpleasant, but not fatal.

What should you do if a tsunami happens?

The first sign of the approach of giant waves is an earthquake. Today, Thailand's security system, upon detecting changes in the depths of the ocean waters, will signal danger. Under no circumstances should sudden low tides be ignored. In such a situation, you need to act very quickly.

If tremors occur or there is a warning of an approaching tsunami, you must:

• collect all valuables, warn as many people as possible about the danger, and quickly leave the territory;
• hide from giant waves in the mountains or areas located far from the coast;
• pay attention to signs showing the shortest route to higher ground;
• The first wave may be small, so you need to stay in a safe place for about two hours until there is complete calm.

After the devastating tsunami of 2004, the government reviewed the safety system, and today the risk of hazardous events has been reduced.

Almost all people have probably heard about the tsunami in Thailand in 2004, as it was the most destructive tsunami in history. The tsunami in Thailand in 2004 is best shown in films such as “Tsunami” (released in 2006) and “The Impossible” (released in 2012). These films talk about how destructive the tsunami was and how difficult it was to find your family and friends after this natural disaster.

What is a tsunami?
Tsunamis are large waves that are usually caused by an earthquake, explosion, or other event that displaces a large volume of water. In the open ocean, a tsunami is usually harmless and invisible to the naked eye. A huge wave can pass almost unnoticed until it reaches shallow waters off the coast. Near the shore, the wave can reach a height of up to 40 meters.

2004 tsunami in Thailand.
The 2004 tsunami, called the Indonesian Tsunami, was one of the worst natural disasters in human history. It was caused by an undersea earthquake with an estimated magnitude of between 9.1 and 9.3 on the Richter scale, making it the third most powerful earthquake ever recorded.
The tsunami that followed the earthquake killed more than 230,000 people in Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India and Thailand, left scores homeless and caused billions of dollars in damage.

Which regions of Thailand suffered the most?
Khao Lak was the worst hit area in Thailand. Here the water made its way from the shore to a distance of 1.5 km. After this tsunami, dolphins were discovered in one of the lakes, located about 1.5 km from the shore. The wave traveled this distance in about one minute. Only one hotel on the hill survived the disaster. The rest were badly damaged.
Phi Phi Don is an H-shaped island. To the east and west there are mountains of limestone that act as a giant wall that blocks the strong winds during the monsoon season. Both of these pieces of sushi are connected by a narrow isthmus.
The isthmus is surrounded on both sides by bays: Ton Sai in the south and Loh Dalam in the north. This isthmus is only 150 meters wide, but is crowded with bungalows and sightseers. The tsunami hit from both bays, so people simply had nowhere to run. The waves were much stronger in Loh Dalam Bay on the west side.
Phi Phi Island Village Beach Hotel Resort and The Spa was badly damaged as it was built on a site where there is no hill to block the tidal waves coming from the west.

The result of the tsunami arriving in Thailand.
The tsunami on the southwest coast of Thailand along the Andaman Sea wreaked death and destruction from the northern border with Burma to the southern border with Malaysia. The worst affected provinces in terms of loss of life and property destruction were Phang Nga, Phuket and Krabi. And this is not only because of their location, but because they were the most developed and most densely populated areas along the coast.
The large loss of life is explained by the fact that the tsunami occurred on the morning after Christmas, when many people were still in their homes or hotel rooms. At least 5,000 people have died in Thailand, almost half of them foreign tourists.
Much of Phuket's west coast was heavily damaged by the tsunami, with most homes, hotels, restaurants and other structures requiring significant repairs or restoration. Some areas, including Khao Lak, were almost completely destroyed by the waves.

Recovery after the tsunami.
Although Thailand suffered significant damage during the tsunami, it was able to rebuild all of its destroyed buildings and infrastructure quite quickly compared to most other affected countries. When traveling to Phuket, Khao Lak and Phi Phi today, you will most likely not see traces or evidence that a tsunami occurred here.

Probability of a new tsunami.
Of course, there is a possibility of a new tsunami, since no one can guess how the earth’s crust will behave. However, earthquakes as strong as the one in 2004 are very rare (a similar earthquake was recorded in this region approximately 700 years ago). In addition, today there are new systems to detect the occurrence of a tsunami and warn people so that they have enough time to escape.

More than 10 years have already passed since a terrible disaster occurred - the tsunami in Thailand. What people had to endure on December 26, 2004 (it was on this day that this terrible event happened) cannot be expressed in words. Waves of monstrous height, rushing at great speed to the shores of Asia, swept away everything in their path: people, animals, houses, cars, trees and everything else. The disaster brought a lot of grief: more than 300 thousand people died, of which 8,500 people died in Thailand.

World history and those people who managed to survive then keep in their memory the tragic events of that day. Let's remember how it was.

How a global tragedy occurred

To the question about when there was a tsunami in Thailand, which brought a lot of troubles not only local residents, but also for numerous vacationers in this country, the events of 2004 will immediately come to mind. IN new history it was the worst disaster in the country. A similar one was recorded on the territory of this state more than 700 years ago.

How did it all begin and what was the cause of this global tragedy?

An ordinary December morning did not foretell any trouble. Everything was as usual. People were doing their usual things: some were still sleeping, some were already working, and some decided to go to the coast. Meanwhile, at 00:58 UTC and 7:58 local time in the Indian Ocean near Indonesian island Simeulue An earthquake of unprecedented magnitude occurred. Its magnitude was 9.1-9.3 points! The tremors provoked the emergence of a series of incredibly high, powerful and fast waves, which, just a few hours later, rushed ferociously to the shores Asian countries(Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Somalia), including Thailand.

It's scary to imagine, but the speed at which the waves rushed was about 1000 km/h . Approaching shallow water, they slowed down a little, as if they were gaining strength before delivering a brutal blow, and acquired simply monstrous sizes - sometimes even up to 40 meters in height!

The earthquake in Thailand was practically not felt, so people did not even suspect that an angry disaster would soon hit the coastal lands. Nobody knew that soon west coast, where Phuket, Krabi province and the surrounding small islands are located, will soon come face to face with an uncontrollable natural disaster. Since there had never been phenomena of such monstrous proportions here before, the tsunami rescue system actually did not work.

About an hour after the fatal earthquake occurred in the Indian Ocean, something inexplicable began to happen. Birds began to fly away from the shore, and animals also ran away from the sea in restlessness. Even the sound of the surf stopped. When the water “went away” and the seabed was exposed, people even then could not think that this was a harbinger of impending disaster. Interested in the beautiful shells and fish remaining on land, they began to go out to the shallow bottom.

Even at that moment, when a huge 15-meter wave rushed towards the shore, no one saw it, since it did not have a characteristic white crest, which is why it simply merged with the horizon. Only when she came close to the coast did panic begin. But it was already too late, because no one could outpace the moving wall of water and manage to escape.

The wave easily swept away everything that stood in its way: people, animals, cars, houses, uprooted trees, pulled out metal reinforcement, tore off live electrical wires, and crushed concrete. And it was not so much the water that caused more trouble, but rather what was in it.

Ocean waters affected hundreds of meters of land, and in some places up to 2 kilometers.

The terrifying consequences of the tsunami

What the raging water element did was terrible. The consequences of the 2004 tsunami in Thailand are incredibly tragic, but Thailand was much luckier due to the shallower Andaman Sea than, for example, the island of Sumatra. Those who were further from the shore and were able to survive this nightmare saw a shocking picture when the water receded.

Various huge objects were found in the most unexpected places: giant trees in houses, motor boats on the roofs, cars in the spacious hotel lobby... There were no streets as such. Everything became like a dump of fragments of furniture, cars, bricks, trees. You can watch the video to see what people saw then.

But the worst thing is the many bodies of dead people and animals. According to official figures, the tsunami killed 8,500 people in Thailand. 5400 are tourists from different countries world, of which about half are children.

The amazing thing is that the earthquake of monstrous force literally pierced the planet right through. The energy of the vibrations was so powerful that some small islands near Sumatra moved to the southwest by about 20 meters, and the planet itself changed its rotation.

The state government, concerned about possible outbreaks of infections, urgently sent forces to search for bodies with a view to identifying and burying them.

The grief the 2004 tsunami brought cannot be measured in words or numbers. It will forever remain in the memory of those who lost their loved ones.

Let's not even talk about the fact that many survivors lost their shelter, clothing, food and any means of subsistence. Many countries around the world began sending humanitarian aid.

Today Thailand has fully recovered from the tragedy. According to special requirements, new housing was built on the coast, additional measures were introduced to prevent devastating consequences if the population suddenly had to endure a tsunami.. And only the memory of people preserves the events of that day - December 26, 2004.

How high is the risk of a tsunami?

In Thailand, tsunamis are rare events. In order for waves of monstrous strength and height to form, several conditions must simultaneously coincide:

• the epicenter of the earthquake is located close to the bottom surface;
• the magnitude of the earthquake is more than 7 points;
• the shock from the earthquake resonated with the vibrations of the water;
• noticeable vertical displacement of parts of the bottom relative to each other.

Often, tsunamis are not even felt by people, but are simply recorded by special devices.

Rescue system

In 2004 in Thailand and neighboring countries, attacked by rogue waves, the danger warning system was not properly adjusted. But after those events, increased attention was paid to this issue.

Today the rescue system in Thailand consists of two parts. This is a warning of impending danger and the evacuation of the population and tourists. In 2012, the system was tested in Phuket. The alert went off and most people moved to higher ground. At least no one was wandering along the shore anymore.

Procedure in case of a tsunami

Of course, it’s better not to get into such situations at all, but the elements are the elements and you need to be on your guard. If you are in Thailand and hear a tsunami alert, you should do the following:

1. Don't panic under any circumstances. The state has a well-functioning tsunami early warning system. And the likelihood that a repeat of the 2004 scenario is possible is negligible.
2. If you suddenly notice that the sea has “removed” and there was no warning about the danger, immediately leave the coastal areas, following the signs.
3. It is necessary to go as far as possible from the sea and climb to higher ground - for example, to the roofs of multi-story buildings.
4. It should be remembered that there are always several waves, and do not go down ahead of time. Sometimes the break between waves can be more than an hour.
5. Even if everything has calmed down, you should not approach the coastal areas for as long as possible.

The 2004 tsunami once again proved to humanity that, despite its inflated sense of superiority and scientific and technological progress, it can be absolutely defenseless against the greatness of the elements. Perhaps more attention should be paid to the safety and protection of people from various natural hazards, than to develop another “important”, absolutely useless invention?