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Saturday, December 24, 2005

Tsunami Money Missing, Governor ready to pay

from Phuketgazette.net

PHUKET CITY: Governor Udomsak Uswarangkura is prepared to pay 2.05 million baht out of his own pocket should he be found ultimately responsible for the tsunami aid money that was reported missing from Phuket Provincial Hall on February 15.

“Under administrative law, there is no way that government funds can just disappear,” he told reporters on Tuesday. “But don’t worry; if the legal process determines that the Governor must be held personally accountable, then I will accept the responsibility. I won’t have any problems paying back this amount of money,”

Few think the Governor was involved in the theft. An investigation led by then-Vice-Governor Supachai Yuwaboon, who, on March 11, concluded that the money had been “lost” through “poor accounting” by workers at the Office of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation.

In stark contrast to V/Gov Supachai’s conclusion, a police investigation revealed that a person had gained entry to a restricted room at Phuket Provincial Hall, cut a lock off the metal strongbox containing the money, pried back the cover and removed 2.05 million baht of the 2.4 million baht it contained.

There were no signs of forced entry to the restricted room, police said.

Phuket City Police on April 22 arrested Apichart Nooprod, Chief of the Finance Division of the Phuket Provincial Financial Office, for the theft.

The case was then transferred to Regional State Attorney’s Office in Surat Thani Province following K. Apichart’s claim that he could not be given a fair trial in Phuket.

However, the State Attorney’s Office ordered Phuket City Police to resume collecting evidence, but it was not until last month – some nine months after the theft took place – that police actually received the order, which was apparently lost between Surat Thani and Phuket.

By then, the annual police reshuffle had taken place and the officer responsible for the investigation, Phuket City Police Superintendent Pol Col Paween Pongsirin, had been promoted and replaced.

Still working in his old job, however, is suspect Apichart, who was released on bail immediately after his arrest.

Under Thai law, individuals accused of theft of government property must post bail of up to 50,000 baht, but Apichart, being Chief of the Finance Division, automatically received “credit” of up to 200,000 baht by dint of his rank as a government employee.

Apichart, who has yet to be formally charged by the courts, has consistently maintained his innocence.

The investigation continues.

Friday, February 18, 2005

Tsunami Database covering 4000 years available

From our email:
PSIgate has released a Tsunami Event Database that contains details of 2,413 events covering more than 4,000 years of tsunami records. It has been supplied by the US National Geophysical Data Center (NGDC).
Click here to access the database.

Wednesday, February 09, 2005

Chennai: AID India's Tsunami Relief Report

AID India has come out with an exhaustive report on the Tsunami relief efforts that have gone into Tamil Nadu. This report includes a chronology of the short-term relief efforts as also a lot of ideas for long-term relief as well, for those who are seeking such plans. The full report can be accessed at: AID India Report

Courtesy: AID India Website

Friday, February 04, 2005

Nine survivors rescued in the Andamans after 37 days

From a Reuters report:
Nine tribespeople have been rescued on Andaman and Nicobar islands more than a month after the tsunami struck, after getting lost in the jungles and surviving on wild boars and coconuts, officials said on Thursday.

[...]

The group, five men, one woman and three girls, fled onto a hilltop when the tsunami struck on Dec. 26, before getting lost in the jungles. They were finally found by a police search team near Campbell Bay on Great Nicobar island, after getting help from a more primitive tribe in the island's interior.

Monday, January 24, 2005

Andamans and beyond

Strong Eartthquake Jolts Nicobar Islands - Source

Earthquake shakes Kuril islands - Source

KAMTCHATKA - Source

Earthquake registered in Ingushetia, no damage or casualties - Tass

Thursday, January 20, 2005

Ranong Fault Revived, and more earthquakes

Hay peoples, not sure if you really want to hear all these tsunami and earthquake news... But here are the links for those who are interested....



Tsunami revives passive Ranong fault near Phuket:

A one-kilometre crack has opened in the ocean floor north of Phuket, Thailand, sparking fears that the dormant Ranong fault has been revived following the Dec 26 undersea earthquake, reports Xinhua.

At Tambon Ratchagrud in Ranong district, north of Phuket, villagers have found a one-km crack on the ocean floor from which a steady stream of air bubbles are surfacing 500 metres offshore in Laem Son Bay.

The area is near the passive Ranong fault that has been inactive for years, said district chief Chanat Kaewbamrung.


sOURCE

ALSO



No need for concern, earthquake swarm it s a coincidence


Very contradictory statement came from seismologists in New Zealand: no need for concern, but keep a survival kit at hand .... Hem......


" A swarm of earthquakes that shook the lower North Island of New Zealand on Tuesday does not indicate a massive tremor is around the corner, the Institute of Geological and Nuclear Sciences (GNS) has said"

Source





Earthquake in China

An earthquake measuring 4.7 on the Richter scale hit Wensu county in Aksu prefecture of northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, at 14:28 Tuesday, according to an official with the regional seismological bureau.

  The Epicenter of the quake is 40 km north to Wensu county, which is 1,100 km away from Urumqi, capital of Xinjiang. No casualty was reported at the press time. Enditem




5.4-MAGNITUDE EARTHQUAKE JOLTS SOUTHERN TAIWAN

Source





Wednesday, January 19, 2005

Mechanisms necessary to ensure human rights in Aid Efforts

The Role of Human Rights in the Wake of the Earthquake and Tsunami:
A Briefing for Members of the Consultative Group on Indonesia
19 – 20 January 2005


In response to the earthquake and tsunami which devastated large parts of the province of Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam (NAD) and surrounding areas, the international donor community has pledged unprecedented levels of support and commitment to both immediate relief efforts and longer term reconstruction of affected communities. Amnesty International welcomes this recognition of global responsibility to those in need. In addition to urging donors to honour their pledges, Amnesty International also calls on the donor community to ensure that relief and reconstruction efforts are conducted within a framework that protects and promotes human rights. This requires meaningful support for, and insistence upon, mechanisms which ensure the implementation of relevant human rights principles.

Source

No help for the 'untouchables'?

KEEZHAIVANAGIRI, India -- Muthu Vellaithevan, a farm laborer who is part of India's untouchable caste, lost seven goats and a cow when massive waves lashed at his coastal village on Dec. 26. The water also swept away his thatch-roofed mud hut.

But he said his real problems began after the water receded, when he and his people found themselves the targets of aid discrimination by the fishermen of his village.

"Forty families from my community took shelter in a school building outside the village," recalled Vellaithevan, 35, a father of three. "But in two days, the fishermen's families at the shelter began troubling us. They did not allow us to sleep and eat with them. They did not want to be under the same roof with us. We were forced to leave. Our homes were destroyed and our children were hungry. Where could we go?"


Source

Japan issuesTsunami Warning, withdraws it half an hour later

Tsunami Warning for Japan

Reuters

According to press sources, the alert was withdrawn shortly afterwards
Source

Follows a week of minor earthquakes worldwide, among which:

Afganistan

Earthquake Measuring 4.4 in Magnitude Registered In
North-western Iran



Minor earthquake in BajhangNEPAL


A minor tremor measuring 5 on the Richter scale was recorded in Bajhang district at 2:28 p.m. on Sunday.

Acording to the Department of Mines and Geology, National Seismic Center, the tremor was around Surama lake of the district. nepalnews.com pd Jan 18 05

Caymans?

Tuesday, January 18, 2005

Corruption threatens Indian mercy

By Ranjit Devraj

NEW DELHI: India is a country notorious for middlemen who specialize in siphoning away development funds. And voluntary agencies are struggling to ensure that the deluge of monetary aid pouring in for the survivors of the Asian tsunami actually reach the ones most in need.

"We are trying to chalk up a methodology to ensure that the money we are collecting gets to the most marginalised people, especially women, children and Dalits (people outside the Hindu caste hierarchy)," said Swapnil Srivastava, speaking to IPS on behalf of 38 voluntary groups in New Delhi that have banded together - under the umbrella of the Indian Social Institute - for the relief effort.

Source

Wednesday, January 12, 2005

FAKE TSUNAMI 'CHARITY' SCAMS


UK 12:00 - 12 January 2005
The Trading Standards Institute (TSI) is warning people to beware of scams taking advantage of public generosity following the tsunami disaster.

There are reports around the country of attempts to trick people into handing over bank account details - or money - on the pretext of it being used to help victims.

www.dec.org.uk

Story

Tuesday, January 11, 2005

Human Hand behind earth disaster?

Industry News on January 11, 2005 at 4:51 AM

Was this an earthquake creation experiment that ran out of control? Many countries are working on methods of creating massive earthquakes as means to defeat the enemy. The technologically advanced countries are working on this project.

If an earthquake and Tsunami can be created artificially and directed to a specific enemy, it can literally create havoc to the enemy.

Link to story

AINT NO GEOLOGY EXPERT, BUT ....

Earthquake: Coincidence or a corporate oil tragedy?
Publication Date : 2005-01-09
Now I don’t claim to be an expert on seismic activity, but there has been a series of events which led up to the 9.0 earthquake of the coast of Indonesia which can not be ignored. This all could be an enormous coincidence, but one must look at the information and choose for themselves whether there is anything to it.

On November 28th one month ago, Reuters reported that during a 3 day span 169 whales and dolphins beached themselves in Tasmania, an island of the southern coast of mainland Australia and in New Zealand. The cause for these beachings is not known, but Bob Brown, a senator in the Australian parliament, said "sound bombing" or seismic tests of ocean floors to test for oil and gas had been carried out near the sites of the Tasmanian beachings recently.
Link

Turkey rocks

Moderate earthquake shakes Turkey's Aegean coast
11/01/2005 - 08:51:55

A moderate earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 5.1 struck Turkey’s southern Aegean coast, sending residents into the streets in panic, the Anatolia news agency reported. At least one person was injured.
The quake hit at 01:48 a.m. (11.48pm Irish time) and was centred on the province of Mugla, the Istanbul-based Kandilli Observatory said. Several aftershocks followed.
Quakes are frequent in Turkey, much of which lies atop the active North Anatolian fault.
Two devastating earthquakes killed about 18,000 people in north-western Turkey in 1999.
Link

Earth's rock around the clock

Usa rocks today 12 Jan 05

A 4.3-magnitude earthquake shook the Coachella Valley early today, according to reports from the United States Geological Survey. The quake occurred at 12:10 a.m. and was centered 7 miles east of Desert Hot Springs. A dispatcher with the Desert Hot Springs Police Department said they received some calls from residents unsettled by the temblor, but there were no immediate reports of damage or injuries.
Source

Earthquake Tolls Southern Peru
11 January 2005 | 20:23 | FOCUS News Agency
Lima. An earthquake measuring 4.6 on the Richter scale rocked the southern parts of Peru. The quake was registered 765km east of Lima. The US Seismological Institute announced that it was centred 154km beneath the earth’s surface.
Source



MANILA, Jan. 10 (Xinhuanet) -- Hundreds of families fled home for fear of a possible tsunami after moderate volcanic earthquakes hitthe northern Philippines, a local TV reported Monday. Quoting a Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) report, the ABS-CBN news channel said that the first earthquake in Taal Volcano occurred at 7:45 p.m. on Sunday, with an intensity 3 on the Richter scale, and an intensity 2 quake was also recorded a minute. Some 300 families, who left home and sought shelter at the public market and school, have been advised to remain calm since that volcanic quakes do not usually result in tsunamis, the TV report said.
Source




Earthquake Registered In South-Eastern Iran
Teheran. A 3.7-magnitude earthquake has been registered in South-Eastern Iranian province of Kerman, RIA Novosti reported, citing the geo-physical centre of the Teheran University. There are no reports for casualties or devastation.
Source


EARTHQUAKE ROCKS EASTERN TAIWAN
2005-01-08 22:36:21
Taipei, Jan. 1 (CNA) An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 4.3 on the Richter scale rocked eastern Taiwan Saturday. No casualties were reported.
Source


4.8 Magnitude Earthquake Shook Bolivia
8 January 2005 | 17:01 | FOCUS News Agency
Potosi. A minor earthquake measuring 4.8 on Richter’s scale has been registered in the region of the town of Potosi in Bolivia. According to the National Seismological Institute if the US, the earthquake’s epicentre has been at about 168 km deep. Until now no casualties or devastation is reported.
Source







Sinkholes in Thailand

The seismic hazard level of the South might have to be increased from zero-low risk to moderate-fairly high risk because the recent Sumatra earthquake and tsunami have had a profound effect on the region’s geological structure, leading earthquake experts have warned.

The most visible indicators are the ongoing soil collapse, which has created a series of sinkholes all over the region. The largest of the 18 holes found in the past two weeks by the Department of Mineral Resources is in Nakhon Si Thammarat, measuring 20 metres in diameter and 10 metres deep.

“This is part of the aftershock effect, which could take several months,” said Assoc Prof Panya Charusiri of Chulalongkorn University’s Department of Geology.


Link to story

Sinkholes appear in Perak Malaysia,

IPOH, Jan 10 (Bernama) -- Seven sinkholes appeared in Perak, with six around here, after the massive underwater earthquake in north Sumatra on Dec 26.

State Mineral and Geoscience Department director Mohamed Noor Ayoob said his department had still not establish the actual link for the appearance of the sinkholes with the earthquake but did not rule out the possibility the sinkhole incidents were related to the earthquake.

Of the seven sinkholes, the biggest, measuring 300m by 100m, appeared in a jackfruit orchard at Kampung Kuboi in Jeram, Kampar, which was quite unique in that 45 sinkholes of various sizes sprouted till last Wednesday.

"There is a possibility the seven sinkholes are related to the earthquake but this is the first time many sinkholes appeared at one time.

Before the earthquake, there was no reports of sinkholes emerging in big numbers," he told reporters Monday.


Original story here
www.bernama.com


Link to story

Met dismisses threat to Thailand

In an official announcement this morning, the Thai Meteorological Department said that it had assessed the latest earthquake situation, and could confirm that there were no earthquakes which could pose a threat to the country's southern Andaman provinces of Ranong, Phang-nga, Phuket, Krabi, Trang or Satun.


Link to story

International forces unravel disaster victim identification system, it s a first

By Ed Cropley

PHUKET, Thailand (Reuters) - Interpol and 20 national police forces have

launched history's biggest disaster victim identification system to unravel the

mesh of forensic data from the bodies of more than 5,000 tsunami dead in

Thailand.

"This is like a world first," said Jeff Emery, an Australian police forensic

expert in charge of a team of about 60 detectives, doctors and pathologists

from 20 countries. "It is using the world's best and latest technology."

Link to story

Monday, January 10, 2005

Earth Still Shaking Bad


Earth Still shaking, yesterdays talk
http://washingtontimes.com/upi-breaking/20050109-100854-4173r.htm



Sunday evening there has been a new quake, Japan
http://washingtontimes.com/upi-breaking/20050109-052631-7039r.htm



Monday Morning New Sumatra Quake
http://washingtontimes.com/upi-breaking/20050109-052631-7039r.htm



China 4 hours ago
http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2005-01/10/content_2439062.htm

Friday, January 07, 2005

Before/After Photos Capture Tsunami's Wrath

An enterprising netizen has created a series of before/after photos in which you can toggle back and forth by clicking a button. Each set of before/after photos is in-sync with each other, overlaying exactly on top of each other for greatest effect. The pictures capture the wrath of the tsunami in all its horror, washing away islands and altering the landscapes of Sri Lanka and Sumatra.

Wednesday, January 05, 2005

Ham radio waves make ripples worldwide

NEWINGTON, CT, Jan 4, 2005--

"The immediate, organized and heroic response of the ham community in the Indian Ocean rim not only alerted the world of the seriousness of the situation, but saved lives by allowing responding agencies to coordinate early efforts to minimize further casualties and damage." ~Pitts, W1AGP.


News coverage about Amateur Radio's role in the tsunami relief effort have been widespread and positive. High-profile articles in the past few days have appeared in The Washington Post and the Orlando Sentinel in the US as well as in several South Asian news sources, including The Times of India and The
Hindu. Other media, including Agence France Presse, the Wall Street Journal and MSNBC, also have run reports on the value of Amateur Radio in helping to open lines of communication cut off when the earthquake and tsunami struck December 26.

Read more at http://www.arrl.org/news/stories/2005/01/04/2/?nc=1

Helen Keller Foundation contributes to relief efforts

The Helen Keller International Foundation has been contributing to the tsunami disaster relief efforts by providing nutritional supplements to children, assessing living conditions and directing clean water, shelter, food, sanitation and medical care to those in need in Aceh and other affected areas in Indonesia.


Contact information:
Helen Keller International
352 Park Avenue South
Suite 1200
New York, New York 10010
TEL: 877-KELLER4 (877-535-5374)
FAX: 212-532-6014
SITE: www.hki.org

Benefit Concert in NYC - 6 JAN 2005

"When times get rough, and friends just can't be found,
Like a bridge over troubled water, I will lay me down..."

~Simon & Garfunkel

A benefit concert for tsunami victims will be held in NYC in support for the 11 countries affected, the 140,000 people reported dead and the 5,000,000 homeless

LOCATION: Crash Mansion @ BL'VD. 199 Bowery Street (at Spring).
TIME: 7:15pm - 11pm
COST: $10 at the door (additional donations encouraged)

100% of proceeds collected at the door will go to charity. Donations will be split between The American Red Cross and Oxfam.

PERFORMERS as of 1/02/2005 (who have all donated their time and talents)

-TINA SUGANDH
http://www.tinasugandh.com
http://www.stuffmagazine.com/cover_girls/html/girl_398.html

Kabir Kamboh: http://www.kabirkamboh.com

Carlos Andres Gomez: http://www.excelanoproject.com

Aalok Mehta: http://www.musicaalok.com

Sparlha Swa: http://www.sparlhaswa.com

Blue Great: http://www.poetryisalive.com

Keith Boogie: http://www.nypoets.com/Poets/brown_k.htm

Sunny Jain: http://www.jainsounds.com

Angel: http://www.nypoets.com/Poets/angel.htm

Hostage, Helena D. Lewis, Kevin Dowdell, Nishi Rajan, Monica Dogra, J.P. Grant, Joslyn John, Roy Simpson, Shalini Sekhar, and many more!

Monday, January 03, 2005

Indian Natural Hazard Map tracked Tsunami seven years ago

Kolkata, Jan. 4. (PTI): The possible epicentre of the killer Tsunami and the probable path that the waves would take had been precisely tracked on the Indian Natural Hazard Map seven years ago.

Director of the National Atlas and Thematic Mapping Organisation (NATMO), Dr G N Saha, said on Monday the map, made by NATMO in the late nineties, had shown the possible epicentre in Indonesia and Tsunami waves travelling to hit the Andaman and Nicobar Islands as well as the southern Indian coast.

"Though this was no prediction of any sort, it just showed theoretically what would happen if an earthquake of high intensity in Indonesia triggered off a Tsunami," he said.

Read Full Article on The Hindu

Malaysia: Airspace, Airports Open for Aid Work

Malaysia opens airspace, airports for tsunami aid work in Aceh

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia has opened its airspace and two airports to US and UN relief operations for the tsunami-hit Indonesian province of Aceh, the foreign ministry

continued...

full story on Channel News Asia

News alerts on potential aftershocks

Several Asian news agencies have recently published articles on potential aftershocks/quakes in the Assam region. The latest news on this development can be found on Google News

Any aftershocks or quakes can be monitored from either the IRIS Seismic Monitor site - near real-time information on seismic activity around the world : http://www.iris.edu/seismon or the US Geological Survey Site, earthquake.usgs.gov/recenteqsww

Sri Lanka: New Risks Begin to Surface

From www.unicef.org

New Risks Begin to Surface

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka, 29 December 2004 - The devastating tsunamis that struck south Asia on December 26 have left over 21,700 dead and thousands of children, women and men missing in Sri Lanka, one of nine countries that were affected by a 9.0 magnitude earthquake and its aftereffects.

More than 700,000 people have been displaced from their homes. These survivors face an array of dangers -- disease, lack of clean water and sanitation facilities.

“We are very concerned in all these areas about the welfare of people who have survived, whether they are getting clean water. We are worried about the risk of disease, children in these circumstances are especially vulnerable to disease,” said Regional Communication Officer Martin Dawes.

Landmines are also another deadly risk. UNICEF’s Ted Chaiban in Sri Lanka said the mines are posing a risk to Sri Lankans and an impediment to relief efforts. “Mines were floated by the floods and washed out of known mine fields, so now we don’t know where they are and the warning signs on mined areas have been swept away or destroyed,” he said, speaking from the UNICEF office in Colombo.

“The greatest danger to civilians will come when they begin to return to their homes, not knowing where the mines are,” Chaiban added.
UNICEF has already responded to a government request for shelter supplies, providing more than 30,000 blankets and sleeping mats as well as t-shirts and other articles of clothing from local emergency stocks. A relief flight from Copenhagen will arrive in Colombo on Wednesday carrying 45 tonnes of supplies.

Across Sri Lanka, UNICEF offices have been mobilized and UNICEF teams are in the field evacuating people and providing emergency supplies such as blankets, bedsheets, drinking water, and medicine.

The relief flight is carrying oral rehydration salts for sick children, medical supplies sufficient to serve 150,000 people for three months, shelter equipment such as tents and blankets, and other urgent relief items.

UNICEF Sri Lanka expects to issue an appeal for some $6 million to help meet urgent needs for Sri Lanka’s children. Half of Sri Lanka’s 25 districts were directly affected by the tsunamis.

Officials from the Sri Lankan government told UNICEF they had “never seen a situation like this before.” Currently, the country is under a national state of emergency.

From www.unicef.org

Sunday, January 02, 2005

Latest News: Jakarta Aid Summit

Latest News: Sri Lanka

Latest News: Indonesia

Latest News: Thailand

Latest News: India

Latest News: General

Indonesia newsfeed on the tsunami

This is the link to newsfeed for Indonesia on EIN News

http://www.einnews.com/indonesia/newsfeed.php?nid=19590&afid=384

Indonesia : Aid efforts in Aceh/Sumatra

An urgent appeal for help from the Aceh/Sumatra region has been made. Details on ongoing relief efforts and news updates from Ground Zero are being recorded at www.mentawai.com/aceh.html

You can help in several ways:

If you want to help with cash via an registered charity, go to www.surfaidinternational.org and donate on line. Surf Aid have an office in Padang and we are working closely with them. Funds sent to SAI will be focused on the west coast area so the help will be targeted in the islands and south west Aceh area.

Padang FM are broadcasting to collect material such as bottled water, rice, matches, cooking ware, tarps, tents, medical supplies and more:

Chris and Chris at Hotel Batan Arau are ready to store material, food and equipment until these can be loaded on boats. Padang residents can drop aid packages at: Hotel Batang Arau, Jl Batang Arau No 33. Phone 27400

If you are in Indonesia, send pachages by mail or courier to:
PT Mentawai Wisata Bahari
Jl Kesatria No. 6
Ganting, Padang
West Sumatra

click on "[+/-] Expand/Collapse this post" to continue--->

The latest news as recorded from the site is :

Padang has over 2,000 hospital beds available. Sibolga has about 200 beds available. No sick or injured have been able to reach those beds yet and we can not confirm any concrete plan to make this happen. One solution that could help thousands is to mobilize a large car ferry to act as a mother ship/floating clinic and a 150 passenger fast ferry to move sick and injured to either Sibolga or Padang. There are ferries in the area that can do this job until bigger faster boats could be sent here. We appeal to all those who have authority to focus on achieving this simple step. It could save a great number of lives and alleviate awful suffering.

As of 11:20 am, 2nd January, the Electric Lamb (sea vessel) has been reported to be approaching Pini Island, Telos Group.

Saturday, January 01, 2005

Daily Good News

Andaman and Nicobar Islands -- In her frantic flight from the killer waves swallowing up her island, Namita Roy found refuge in a forest.

There she gave birth to a boy who would be named Tsunami.

On another island, 8-month-old Michael Jeremiah slipped out of his mother's arms and sank into the sea until his father saw his toe poke up from the waves and brought him back to life.

The tale of the two babies will become part of the folklore of miraculous survivals of Sunday's catastrophic earthquake and tsunamis.

Death Toll Update

CNN has confirmed that the undersea earthquake off Sumatra and the giant waves it triggered killed more than 140,000 people, and that number is expected to rise.

Deaths by country:

Indonesia: 79,906, with another 3,598 missing.

Sri Lanka: More than 45,000. Sri Lankan officials say 27,229 have died in non-rebel-held areas; 5,240 are missing; 12,482 injured; and 899,408 are homeless.

India: At least 10,000

Thailand: 4,812. Thai prime minister says toll could exceed 8,000. 6,541 are still missing, more than 3,000 of them Swedish tourists.

Malaysia: 66

Maldives: 74

Myanmar: 90

Tanzania: 10

Bangladesh: 2

Somalia: Kenyan media reports hundreds dead.

Kenya: Kenyan media reports one death.

Seychelles: Unconfirmed reports of deaths.

Logistics Becomes Focus of Aid

From Yahoo

Having pledged $350 million to help tsunami victims in South Asia, the Bush administration is focusing on the logistics of getting clean water, food and other supplies to people rebuilding their lives and burying the scores of thousands who perished.

To help coordinate the relief effort, the United States has set up a support center in Thailand. More than 20 patrol and cargo aircraft have been dispatched to carry disaster supplies, Bush said. The aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln, the Maritime Pre-Positioning Squadron from Guam and an amphibious ship carrying a Marine Expeditionary Unit soon will be in position to generate clean water and support other relief efforts.

An American military cargo jet on Friday brought blankets, medicine and the first of 80,000 body bags to Banda Aceh, the devastated Indonesian city near the quake epicenter. Nine U.S military C-130 transports took off Friday from Utapao in Thailand to ferry supplies to southern parts of Thailand, Indonesia and Sri Lanka, Maj. Larry J. Redmon said in Bangkok.



Friday, December 31, 2004

Death Toll Posts 12/28-31

Death Toll Posts 12/28-31

Satellite Imagery Posts 12/28-31

Satellite Imagery Posts 12/28-31

Thursday, December 30, 2004

Updates Post

Please leave a comment here to provide up-to-date news links or information.

What would be especially helpful are first-hand accounts from the affected areas.

Good News

I will try to post at least one piece of good news each day to remind us all that there are good things happening even in the midst of all this tragedy.

Swedish Father and Son Reunited (Source: Yahoo)

A Swedish toddler was reunited with his father Wednesday, days after being found alone in the aftermath of the deadly tsunami that swept Asia.

Hannes Bergstroem was found after the waves subsided Sunday and taken to a hospital on this resort island for treatment. His photo was posted on the Internet Monday.

The two-year-old's uncle saw the photo and claimed the boy Tuesday. On Wednesday the child was reunited with his father, Marko Karkkainen, at a hospital on the southern Thai island of Phuket where both father and son were receiving treatment.

Hannes, his face scratched and pocked with mosquito bites, looked puzzled as his father choked up with emotion.

Despite the joy of seeing one another again, the day was tinged with sadness and anxiety. Suzanne Bergstroem, the boys mother, is still among some 5,000 people missing in Thailand. Nearly 2,000 people are confirmed dead there, and the overall death toll from the tsunami in 11 affected countries is approaching 80,000.


European Death Toll

Sweden said on Thursday more than 1,000 Swedes may have been killed in the Asian tsunami, the worst death toll for any foreign country.

Some 5,000 foreign tourists, mostly Europeans, were still missing four days after the wall of water hit coasts and devastated beach resorts round the Indian Ocean. Germany said more than 1,000 of its citizens were still missing.

Among foreign states, Sweden fears being hardest hit as its people have flocked for years to Thailand to escape long, cold winters. Officials have raised the figure of missing to 2,500 from 1,500.

Tourists from Australia, Canada, Japan, Singapore, South Africa and South Korea were also among the dead.

Nearly 700 Italians, 462 Norwegians, 419 Danes, 263 Finns, 200 Czechs and 294 Singaporean tourists are among those reported missing.

In Norway, where 21 nationals are confirmed dead, Prime Minister Kjell Magne Bondevik said many of the 462 missing in the tsunami may be dead. "

A deputy foreign minister said on Thursday 33 Germans were confirmed dead, while more than 1,000 were missing.

(Source: Reuters)

Death Toll Update

Death Tolls by country: (Source: CNN)

Indonesia: 79,940

Sri Lanka: 24,673, with another 6,589 missing and condered most likely dead.

India: At least 10,000

Thailand: More than 4,000. Thai PM says toll could exceed 7,000.

Myanmar: 90

Malaysia: 66

Maldives: 46

Tanzania: 10

Bangladesh: 2

Somalia: Kenyan media reports hundreds dead

Kenya: Kenyan media reports one death

Seychelles: Unconfirmed reports of deaths



Tuesday, December 28, 2004

Before and After hi-res satellite images of tsunami zone

BoingBoing sez

Amazing, amazing images of beachfront in Sri Lanka before and after the tsunami hit. Also, hi-res satellite images of the tsunami itself. Snip:

"This is a natural color, 60-centimeter (2-foot) high-resolution QuickBird satellite image featuring the southwestern coast of Sri Lanka. Imagery was collected at 10:20 a.m. local time, slightly less than four hours after the 6:28 a.m. (local Sri Lanka time) earthquake and shortly after the moment of tsunami impact."

Link

Field Report for Andaman, India

The SEEDS field team is now camping in Port Blair in the Andaman Islands. This is the summary of their update:

1. There is no NGO doing relief work in Andaman and Nicobar so far. Only the administration and some small local groups are operating.

2. Nicobar area is worst hit. The people were washed out, and these being islands in the middle of the ocean, many bodies did not wash back ashore. From back calculations (by counting heads and assuming missing persons as dead), the rough estimates of casualties are about 15,000.

3. Nicobar area needs all basic relief support, including food, clothing and temporary shelter.

4. There is no major damage in Port Blair. In fact, the administration is evacuating people from vulnerable areas and bringing them to Port Blair under fear of another tsunami. This is because this region is continuing to have reasonably large quakes, the latest being one of magnitude 6.2 on the Richter scale at about 7 this morning.

5. Four relief camps are being operated in Port Blair by the administration. The administration is acutely understaffed and under-resourced to operate the camps. The Red Cross is trying to move relief material through a chartered flight from Delhi to Port Blair. They too have no advance teams in place, and are unsure of the capacity of the local groups to manage relief distribution.

6. Taking relief from the mainland involves clearances from the central government, and is a cumbersome process. Moving to remote islands also requires government permissions and no NGO can operate in those areas independently.

7. The Administration has requested us to take charge of two relief camps in the vicinity of Port Blair. We will start operating one relief camp with about 2000 persons from the morning of 29 December, and another camp in a day or two. We are rushing backup manpower to the Andamans from our field office in Gujarat. 8. The Administration is talking about long term needs of reconstruction. We will study this need and work on a plan for this after dealing with the immediate priority of life-saving relief.

Source: IndiaSeeds

Snapshot - 2000 GMT

* Death toll close to 60,000; many missing in aftermath of tsunami in Indian Ocean, triggered by an underwater earthquake of magnitude 9.0 off the Indonesian island of Sumatra
* Disease could kill as many people as tsunami, World Health Organisation (WHO) expert says in Geneva
* Indonesia says tsunami death toll 27,174 people
* Sri Lanka says 18,706 dead but may reach 20,000
* India says 11,499 dead, including 7,000 confirmed or presumed dead in India's Andaman and Nicobar islands
* Thailand says 1,516 dead, 1,400 missing.
* Hundreds of foreigners feared dead and hundreds missing around Indian Ocean disaster zone.
* Deaths as far away as East Africa; at least 122 killed by tsunami in Somalia and Seychelles.
* United Nations says there could be epidemics within days
* Rescue, recovery and rebuilding will cost billions of dollars, U.N. relief agency says * Governments and aid agencies pledge millions in aid
* Damage could exceed 10 bln euros -Munich Re reinsurer

Source: AlertNet

Satellite pictures of Tsunami 2004 from India's satellites


http://www.nrsa.gov.in/tsunami2004.pps

MIRROR:
planetvimal-tsunami2004.ppt

Courtesy: National Remote Sensing Agency, Dept. of Space, Govt. of India

Tsunami changes India's coastline

Tuesday, December 28, 2004 (New Delhi):

Latest satellite images show that Sunday's killer tsunami has changed the topography of India's coastline.

The southern part of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands consists of 19 islands known as the Nicobars, in which Great Nicobars, Mancowrie, Car Nicobar and Trinket are prominent.

Nature's wrath

A satellite image of Trinket island, taken on December 21 compared to a latest image shows the destruction the tsunami has done to the island.

Another satellite image taken on December 26 shows that the tsunami waves have swamped the centre of the island almost splitting it in two. Trinket is an island with a majority tribal population.

The satellite pictures show big changes in Chennai as well. Satellite images taken early this year shows Chennai's waterfront - the famed Marina beach.

The Adiyar river can also be seen running through the city.

Source