Most of the people killed were members of the fishing community.The state of Kerala experienced tsunami-related damage in three southern densely populated districts.Many villages in the state of Andhra Pradesh were destroyed. A 2006 study estimated a magnitude of Mw 9.1–9.3; Hiroo Kanamori of the California Institute of Technology estimates that Mw 9.2 is representative of the earthquake's size. The construction of seawalls and breakwaters reduced the power of waves at some locations.The largest run-up measured was at 12.5 m (41 ft) with inundation distance of 390–1,500 m (1,280–4,920 ft) in,A regular passenger train operating between.In Sri Lanka, the civilian casualties were second only to those in Indonesia. The absence of a tsunami warning system contributed to the magnitude of the disaster, as did the local building stock. Dec 18, 2014 Editor's Note: Although the likelihood of an earthquake and tsunami like the 2004 Sumatra event in the Indian Ocean was well recognized, the level of destruction and number of casualties was unprecedented. The,The changes in the distribution of masses inside the Earth due to the earthquake had several consequences. Even beach resorts in parts of Thailand which were untouched by the tsunami were hit by cancellations.Beyond the heavy toll on human lives, the Indian Ocean earthquake has caused an enormous environmental impact that will affect the region for many years to come. It has been reported that severe damage has been inflicted on,According to specialists, the main effect is being caused by poisoning of the freshwater supplies and of the soil by saltwater infiltration and a deposit of a salt layer over arable land. The Sumatra-Andaman earthquake was one of the three largest earthquakes ever recorded. In some areas drinking water supplies and farm fields may have been contaminated for years by saltwater from the ocean.Both the earthquake and the tsunami may have affected shipping in the.Countries in the region appealed to tourists to return, pointing out that most tourist infrastructure is undamaged.
On 26 December 2004, a magnitude 9.1 earthquake (3.316 N, 95.854 E, depth 30 km) occurred off the coast of northern Sumatra, Indonesia. Geological Survey of India Special Publication no. However, others caution that damage to infrastructure is an overriding factor. Along the west coast, the inundation was observed around Guptapara, Manjeri, Wandoor, Collinpur and Tirur regions. At,The tsunami run-up was only 1.6 m (5 ft 3 in) in areas in the state of Tamil Nadu shielded by the island of Sri Lanka but was 4–5 m (13–16 ft) in coastal districts such as,The worst affected area in Tamil Nadu was.The tsunami effects varied greatly across different coastal areas according to the number of waves experienced, the inundation distance and height of waves, and the population density of the area, and topological and geographical features. This is the third largest earthquake in the world since 1900 and is the largest since the 1964 Prince William Sound, Alaska earthquake. Scientists investigating the damage in Aceh found evidence that the wave reached a height of 24 m (80 ft) when coming ashore along large stretches of the coastline, rising to 30 m (100 ft) in some areas when travelling inland.Because the 1,600 km (1,000 mi) fault affected by the earthquake was in a nearly north–south orientation, the greatest strength of the tsunami waves was in an east–west direction.Coasts that have a landmass between them and the tsunami's location of origin are usually safe; however, tsunami waves can sometimes.Because of the distances involved, the tsunami took anywhere from fifteen minutes to seven hours to reach the coastlines.Some of the tsunami's energy escaped into the Pacific Ocean, where it produced small but measurable tsunamis along the western coasts of North and South America, typically around 200 to 400 mm (7.9 to 15.7 in).Despite a delay of up to several hours between the earthquake and the impact of the tsunami, nearly all of the victims were taken by surprise. The maximum runup height of almost 9 m (30 ft) was recorded in Bandarbeyla. Though the intensity of shaking did not reach the maximum on the scale, the motion lasted … The second and third waves came in 10-minute intervals after the first. The fault rupture propagated 1,300 to 1,600 kilometers northwest for … The estimated material losses are $10 billion and insured losses are $2 billion. Ghosh, P. Jana, T.S. However, because of the initial quick response, this was minimized.In the days following the tsunami, significant effort was spent in burying bodies hurriedly due to fear of disease spreading. The tsunami generated by the earthquake was recorded nearly world-wide and killed more people than any other tsunami in recorded history, almost 230,000 missing and presumed dead.