Documentary about the tsunami. How to escape a tsunami

Many people are afraid to travel to Thailand because of the terrible natural phenomenon of the tsunami. Of course, this is dangerous, but is life in an ordinary city less dangerous? Car traffic, terrorism, criminals, etc. Still, if such a fear exists, one can choose an island by the sea, which is safe. In the east of Thailand, the islands are located in the Gulf of Thailand of the Pacific Ocean, which means that this is not an open ocean and a tsunami cannot be there.

These islands include:

• (Pattaya) - (mainland, not an island)
• (Ko Chang)
• (Ko Kut),
• (Koh Samui)
• (Koh Phangan)
• (Koh Thao).

The last tsunami in Thailand was on December 26, 2004. The large island of Phuket suffered from this phenomenon, and the islands adjacent to these, for example, the popular ones, Bamboo Island, James Bond Island, Chicken, and others. If the large island of Phuket and the province of Krabi were partially affected, i.e. locally, the small islands were not at all lucky. The wave was 10-15 meters high, so boats and fragments of houses were found on the mountains in the famous Phi Phi Ley Bay.

On the islands and in places that are prone to the threat of a tsunami, there are always signs indicating which direction to run in case of a tsunami.

Causes of the tsunami in Thailand

The tsunami in Thailand comes from large earthquakes in the Indian Ocean. Unfortunately, they do not always have time to inform people about it or are afraid to cause panic, or they treat people's lives irresponsibly. In 2004, Phuket had all the necessary radars and sensors that could capture big wave, but for some reason no one announced this information, and more than 400 thousand people died! In the Indian Ocean itself, there was no warning system at that time, and it is quite possible that the existing sensors might not work.

During the tsunami in Phuket was the grandson of the King of Thailand, who also died. This can only mean that the Thai authorities themselves did not know about what was happening.

After this terrible disaster, the Thai authorities took people's safety seriously. Now there is a warning system in the Indian Ocean and it was necessary to check its operation in April 2012, when there were powerful tremors near Indonesia.

Then the beaches of Phuket were deserted instantly, a siren yelled, security did not let the beach pass, and they also evacuated people present on the beach and woke up the sleeping ones, warned and persuaded them to go to the mountains in every possible way.

Brief description of resorts with minimal tsunami threat

Pattaya- a tourist city filled with Russians. People come here, eager to get acquainted with the prostitution of Thailand, or rather with transvisitation. The sea is striking in its impurity and seething life. This resort is not for those who want to relax and not hear Russian speech throughout their vacation.

Koh Chang- a quiet, remote, romantic island, where with such pleasure you can separate from the whole world and just live for your own pleasure, reveling in the beauty of the island and the ocean.
Ko Kut- a paradise place, also not crowded, with a beautiful clear ocean and prankster monkeys.

Koh Samui- a large island, civilized, quiet and at the same time "boiling" with life. Every opportunity opens up here: entertainment, bars, cafes, nightlife, clear ocean and even a quiet life - depending on the choice of location on the island.

Koh Phangan- the island where the Full moon party is held. The island is located in such a way that at night on a full moon, it is as bright as during the day. Drinks are poured and mixed in buckets, dancing and fun on the ocean.

Koh Tao- this place is reminiscent of the adventures of Jacques-Yves Cousteau. How diverse is the underwater world! Round algae, corals, crabs, fish of different sizes and deep blue caustic water! This island is designed for tranquility, diving and snorkeling.

Which hit the territory of the Caribbean, Cuba and the United States. But let's remember that on December 26, 2004 at 7:58 an earthquake occurred in the Indian Ocean, which brought irreversible consequences. The magnitude of destruction reached 9.1 - 9.3 points. It provoked the development of the strongest tsunami in Thailand. Many countries fell under the blows of natural disaster, including Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India, Maldives. Most of the impact was taken by the inhabitants of the islands of Phuket, Phi Phi, Khao Lak, Lanta, Krabi, located on the west coast of Thailand. According to Wikipedia, between 225,000 and 300,000 innocent people died. Accurate estimates of victims are complicated by the fact that many were carried away by a giant wave into the open sea.

How did the greatest tragedy of the century begin?

December 26, 2004 was an ordinary morning that did not portend trouble. The people who visited during their trip and the local population went about their usual business and could not even think that this day would bring so many victims.

Meanwhile, changes began to occur in the sea, which in the future led to irreversible consequences. As a result of a sudden earthquake, water masses shifted in the ocean depths. This led to the fact that the sea waves formed water semicircles, which stretched for a distance of thousands of kilometers, and headed towards the coastal zone of Thailand, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, while developing a speed of up to a thousand km / h. Approaching the shore, the waves slowed down, however, they could reach 40 meters high.

The earthquake did not make itself felt on land, and the giant waves had not yet managed to reach the embankment and show themselves to people. Therefore, anyone who was currently on the islands of Thailand, in particular Phuket and Krabi, could not imagine that they would witness a deadly devastating tsunami.

An hour after the start of the tremors provoked by the earthquake, the first signs of the approach of the cataclysm appeared on land: animals and birds left the beach with concern in their eyes. The water from the sea at one moment moved away from the shore. Shallow areas of the seabed were strewn with fish and shells, which ended up on land due to the fact that sea water narrowed its boundaries. People with undisguised interest went to collect seafood. This was their fatal mistake.

After all, a wall of sea water was advancing on the shore, rising to 15 meters high. Guests and residents of Thailand could not notice the impending tsunami with the naked eye, because the wave did not have a white crest and seemed from afar to be a reflection of the sea surface. When the real picture of what was happening rose before the people, it was already too late to run - attempts to escape from the disaster were unsuccessful.

With furious energy, the water rushed, covering the land for two kilometers. At the same time, she demolished everything in her path, bringing only destruction in her wake. After a short period of time, the sea wave headed back. The threat was not only water, but also pieces of earth, concrete, destroyed furniture, building materials, cars, billboards that she carried with her. These items could easily take the lives of people who managed to escape from the disaster.

Tsunami in Thailand 2004 video

Those who were at the epicenter of the events managed to capture unique moments on video cameras. These shots are striking in how ruthless the elements swept through the territory of Thailand and what losses humanity suffered. You can watch the 2004 tsunami in Thailand in the video below:

Tsunami in Thailand 2004: how many died?

The number of dead surprised everyone in earnest: 8500 people died, about 3 thousand were residents of Thailand, the rest were citizens of more than forty countries. The 2004 tsunami caused the largest and most deadly damage of any natural disaster that has ever been recorded.

What did the tsunami leave behind?

When the water left the land and returned to the seashores, the people who were destined to escape during the tsunami could not believe their eyes. The exotic corners of Thailand, impressive with their beauty and attracting many tourists every year, have turned into ruins. Around it was possible to observe the destroyed buildings, the premises of shops, restaurants, pieces of metal from broken cars, fallen trees, mutilated human bodies under the rubble.

Cleanup

When the deadly elements receded, work was immediately begun to eliminate the consequences of the 2004 tsunami in Thailand. For the survivors, points were created where they could receive medical care, food and clean water, and spend the night. All victims were distributed among medical institutions. The big disadvantage of the fact that hot weather always prevails in Thailand was a high probability of contamination of the air and drinking water, as a result of which an outbreak of infections could develop. Therefore, the list of initial tasks of the local authorities included the search for all the dead, their further identification and burial. Since there were only ruins around, the discovery of dead bodies under the rubble took a lot of time, personnel and effort.

Useful for the tourist:

The authorities of many countries of the world provided the necessary assistance to the Thais: whether it was human resources or material resources.

The tremors generated by the earthquake had an impossible force, as they passed through the planet Earth and caused ground vibrations of up to 3 mm in the United States. While the elements were raging, a large amount of energy was released, which provoked a change in the rotation of the planet. Because of this the length of the day has decreased by 2.6 microseconds. Part of the islands located near Sumatra moved 20 meters to the southwest.

Thailand today

For all the time that has passed since the 2004 tsunami, Thailand has managed to completely recreate the devastated areas. A year after the cataclysm, people who lost their houses and apartments were provided with new housing.

All buildings that are built in Thailand, especially on the coast, meet special requirements. They are designed in such a way that, in the event of a new catastrophe, they can withstand the impact of the sea element and save the lives of thousands of innocent people.

Thailand takes part in an international system for tracking the movement of water masses in the ocean, thanks to which they can predict the invasion of a tsunami. In settlements close to the sea, warning systems for the approaching elements and plans for evacuation of the population have been formed. People were familiarized with the rules of conduct in the event of another natural disaster.

The authorities have managed to restore the former atmosphere of a tourist center in Thailand, although all these achievements have not come easy. In 2005-2006, people planning to travel were still in fear of the event and were in no hurry to buy tickets to these resorts. Therefore, the cost of vouchers has dropped significantly so that it is possible to somehow arrange tourists on vacation on the Thai coast.

Years later, the situation in Thailand is the same as in the old days before the fatal natural disaster - this is one of the most popular, world-famous resort corners of the world. Reviews of tourists satisfied with their trips only confirm this information. Now about the tsunami in Thailand in 2004, only fragments of video files and warning signs on the coast remind. However, we will always remember the losses that this cataclysm brought to humanity.

Text: Alexander Ivanov
Photo: Vladimir Smolyakov

The ocean is never completely calm. Waves roll towards the shore in an endless succession, reluctantly lick the beach and dissolve in the endless expanse of water. The even rustling of the waves and the incomparable smell of the sea - these are the factors that have had a philosophical and pacifying effect on a person from time immemorial ... And when the FIRST WAVE appeared (it was only two times higher than the others), almost no one noticed it. Another two hours later, the SECOND WAVE came, flooding the beaches for fifty meters and washing away some things of the vacationers (which caused a playful commotion). And then the sea began to recede, exposing the bottom. Over the next two and a half hours, the coastline moved seven hundred meters deep into the ocean. An inquisitive, but apparently not very educated people wandered the shallows in joyful excitement, collecting shells and small fish. All this continued until the THIRD WAVE came...

The foreseeable history of mankind (we naively believe that we know almost everything about this period) has several millennia. By human standards, this is a lot, but by cosmic or geological - not even a moment. Take the dinosaurs, for example. According to rough estimates of scientists, these monsters died 65 million years ago! So, the human brain is simply not able to realize such an abyss of time. Human memory in general is surprisingly short, and our children perceive the monstrous cataclysms of the 20th century as something prehistoric. But the second World War ended only 60 years ago, and witnesses are still alive ...

retrospective

The European layman was spoiled. All catastrophes and wars moved away in time or, at worst, in space. Well, tell me, who among the living today remembers the word "Krakatau"? Yes, almost no one. In general, we are all overwhelmingly sure that planetary comfort and tranquility will be enough for our age...

After the terrible disaster that befell South Asia, we begin to clearly understand: humanity in general and its specific representatives in particular are not insured against anything. Is the Indian and other oceans far away? Do you know that there are also faults in the Caspian Lake (in 1895, a wave caused by an earthquake in the Caspian completely flooded the coastal village of Uzun-Ada)? And, if it shakes harder under its serene surface, then not only Iran and Azerbaijan will be flooded, but also, for example, Astrakhan. It's getting closer, isn't it?

By the way, our brother journalist hastened to call the tsunami that swept across South Asia "the biggest disaster in the history of mankind." But this, to put it mildly, is not true. Do you know what the aforementioned Krakatau is? And this is just a small volcanic island in the same Indonesia. So, it smoked for centuries, smoked, sometimes erupted. And in 1883, Krakatoa exploded. The result is terrible - an ocean wave 20 meters high and 36,000 victims! Who remembers? And it hasn't even been a century and a half. That's what it is...

Or another kind of example. In 1931, the Yangtze River flooded. From floods, famine and epidemics, at least 3,000,000 people died (no, no, you were not mistaken in counting zeros, exactly three million)! No one moved: firstly, they are Chinese, and secondly, they are far away. But you can find mournful examples even closer... 1201, the Mediterranean Sea. The earthquake claimed more than a million souls in Syria and Egypt. But for the planet, 800 years is not a term, and geological processes under the Mediterranean continue.

The wave that hit the shores of Portugal, Spain and North Africa in 1775 killed more than 70,000 people. But these are, so to speak, our “internal” tsunamis, that is, tsunamis caused by the activity of our planet. And there are also "space" tsunamis caused by collisions with meteorites. So, a boulder about 10 kilometers across once landed in the Yucatan Peninsula (Mexico), forming a funnel 30 kilometers deep. North America burned to the ground, and one can only guess about the height of the waves. A little (on a geological scale) later, the space block hit the Pacific Ocean closer to Antarctica. Here you can guess more specifically about the height of the wave. For example, according to the remains of living organisms thrown out by a tsunami to a height of several hundred meters (Andes). Can you imagine such a vibe? Me not. And I don't want to. But whatever one may say, it is still exotic. And the Earth is rare with space rocks. But "home" tsunamis happen dozens of times a year. So what is this phenomenon?

Modern science says that a tsunami is a special kind of wave of non-storm origin, most often caused by an underwater earthquake. The distance between the crest of a wave and a hollow in the open sea can be hundreds of kilometers, and the height is not more than a meter. For navigation, they are practically safe (a ship may simply not notice such a wave). But tsunamis in the open sea expend their energy quite slowly and can spread over very long distances. When the wave reaches shallow water, and even more so gets into narrowness (bay, gulf, harbor), it turns into that same monster - a wall of water up to several tens of meters high. Actually, “tsunami” is a Japanese word and means nothing more than “wave in the harbor”. The Japanese know what they are saying: they have water all around, and seismically active zones are "at hand" ... On June 15, 1896, in the Sanriku region, in the late afternoon, residents felt tremors. People lived by the sea and understood how it could turn out, so they rushed to the mountains. But since nothing happened, they returned after a while, and when they returned, they saw that the sea had receded from the coast ... It was too late to run, and seven 35-meter waves leveled three provinces (800 kilometers of coast). 27,000 victims. But note: the fishermen who were at that time at sea simply did not notice anything ...

third wave

And then December 26, 2004 came ... An earthquake (the strongest in forty years in this area) occurred under the waters of the Pacific Ocean along a fault line off the coast of the island of Sumatra and caused vertical (both up and down) displacements of the ocean floor. Its area was 1,200 kilometers long and about 100 kilometers wide.

The energy released at the same time was monstrous, but only one percent went to the formation of the actual waves. But even that was enough. Yes, in the open sea, the wave height did not exceed 60 centimeters, but at the same time, the water shaft had a speed of 800 kilometers per hour! And since the fault went approximately from north to south, the tsunami waves ran in a perpendicular direction - to the west and to the east. In the east were the island of Sumatra (Indonesia) and Thailand, in the west - India and Sri Lanka. These are the countries that suffered the most.

What do experts advise to do in the event of a tsunami? An earthquake is a natural signal of the possibility of a tsunami. Before the arrival of a wave, the water usually recedes far from the coast, exposing the seabed for hundreds of meters (and sometimes for several kilometers), and this low tide can last from minutes to hours. The very movement of the waves can be accompanied by thunderous sounds that are heard long before the approach of the tsunami (for example, it was in Japan in 1895). And yet, we are frankly distrustful of the “anti-wave” measures recommended by some experts, including such advice as climbing onto roofs and hiding under ... dining tables (this is not fiction, the author read this with his own eyes!) ...

A warning system is needed to warn people of danger. There is simply no such thing in the Indian Ocean yet. But in the Pacific, on the contrary, the international warning system has long existed, and it, in particular, includes East Coast Thailand...

Today, the "wave" warning system is able to notify of danger in 3-14 hours. But since there are no wave sensors installed in the region (seismologists simply registered a strong earthquake), it was not possible to determine the direction of the tsunami. The only "wave" station south of the epicenter registered a tsunami less than two feet high moving towards Australia.

The waves also hit the beaches of resorts on the west coast of Thailand. Yes, Thailand is part of the international tsunami warning system, but there are no wave sensors on its western coast (they are installed on buoys in the ocean). The northern tip of the earthquake is localized near the Andaman Islands, and the waves went east, in the direction of the Thai resort of Phuket. It happened on Sunday morning, when people were just waking up. As a result of an earthquake of magnitude nine, water walls as high as a two-story house moved west across the Bay of Bengal and struck at the inhabitants of the coasts. A few hours after the earthquake, a series of strong shocks also occurred in Sumatra. The quake began on a fault line deep in the ocean off the coast of Sumatra before spreading north and south, reaching the Andaman and Nicobar Islands between India and Myanmar in the north, scientists say. Apparently, the seabed was deformed along the entire length of this fault.

And when the water is gone...

Even if we remember that exactly one year before the current disaster (December 26, 2003) the earthquake in the province of Kerman (Iran) claimed more than 40,000 human lives, all the same, what happened in the Indian Ocean basin is truly monstrous. 230,000 dead almost simultaneously - humanity has not encountered such a thing for a long time. But never from a tsunami. In that sense, it is truly the greatest disaster in history.

It was into this nightmare that the fighters of the airmobile rescue squad of the Russian Emergencies Ministry had to fly. I must say that people who have traveled all over the continents work in Tsentrospas. They were in Turkey and Taiwan, Colombia and India. But they didn't have to see it either. 12 hours after receiving the news of the disaster, the detachment was transferred by transport Il-76 to Sri Lanka to an airfield near the capital of the island of Colombo. The fighters of the detachment were ready to start rescue work immediately, but then the notorious "human factor" intervened. It's no secret that on our planet, in addition to natural factors, unfortunately, there are also political factors. And South Asia is not a piece of paradise at all (separatism blooms there in full bloom). So, in the Indonesian province of Aceh, rescue work was hampered by the actions of the rebels, demanding ... of course, independence. Moreover, they are difficult to such an extent that the authorities at first generally refused to let anyone in there. The same is true in Sri Lanka.

Since the civil war continues in the country, the Sri Lankan government could not guarantee the safety of our people. For this reason, our leadership, in turn, did not give permission to advance to the emergency zone, as a result of which only a few days later our rescuers were able to move to the north of the island in the direction of the cities of Lavinia and Moratura. In the north and northeast of the country, detachments of the so-called Tamil Eelam Liberation Tigers (LTTE) operate. And the authorities did not dare to let our rescuers into these territories for a long time. Well, when permission was finally received, the detachment moved further north in the direction of the city of Galle. On the way, I had to disassemble the destroyed roads, work on the rubble, cut concrete blocks. But since by this time there was practically no one to save, the main burden fell on the doctors. There were four of them, and each assisted about fifty victims a day. The danger of epidemics exists to this day - the heat is tropical, the humidity is almost 100%. Now the doctors of the detachment have been replaced by a mobile hospital of the Ministry of Emergency Situations.

What about search dogs? "Our dogs are looking for the living," one of the people there told us. “Corpses are a shock to them.” And for us? Those who lost their homes were received by Buddhist monasteries and Catholic churches, and it was there that our doctors went on a specially equipped Land Rover Defender. At this time, two other "defs" with rescue crews were working in the destruction zone. They saw everything: swept away houses, washed ashore ships, and an overturned train, in which a thousand people died, and the ruins of a Sunday school, where 390 children remained ... But due to bureaucratic delays in actually saving people, the detachment practically did not accept participation. When the cars reached the wave passage zone, all the bodies had already been removed - it is not difficult to dismantle a village house. As a result, doctors were most in demand. The affected people also need food, water, medicine and blankets. All this needs to be bought, brought and distributed. So, we need people, cars, ships and planes. Under-Secretary General Jan Egeland of Norway is responsible for UN humanitarian operations. But as it turned out, his organization is so bureaucratic, works so slowly and inefficiently, that by definition it cannot cope with a task of this magnitude. Apparently, this is another reason why our guys spent some of the hottest days outside the disaster zone.

Forecast for the day after tomorrow

What can await us in the future? American scientists who constantly monitor seismic activity in the Pacific Ocean warn that geological activity is on the rise. And if an event similar to the current one, but with a different vector, happens, a significant area of ​​California and other western US states may be in the flood zone. The Atlantic Ocean is also on the alert... Recently, a hypothesis has been put forward that during the explosion of a volcano located in the Canary Islands, a wave with a height of one kilometer may arise! The end of old Europe? So, are we completely defenseless? Not really. A tsunami warning system exists in the Pacific Ocean. Now a decision has been made to create a similar service in the Indian Ocean.

Forewarned is forearmed.

And one moment. Countries such as Japan or Holland have accumulated vast experience in dealing with the water element. The system of dams, embankments and other engineering structures reliably protects them. So from a technological point of view, a lot can be done. The main thing is to do. And steps in this direction are already underway - an international conference is being prepared. Well, it is not possible to fight poverty together, let's try to fight against natural disasters. Perhaps it is precisely the understanding that it will not be possible to sit out that will make the governments and the inhabitants headed by them think a little about others. In the meantime, we just have to honor the memory of 230,000 dead.

P.S. We have probably become a little smarter if today “aircraft” with rescuers are flying across the borders of states, ready to provide free assistance to everyone who needs it. And structures like the State Central Airmobile Rescue Squad of the EMERCOM of Russia are ready to leave at any moment to help people from another country and another continent.

On Maldives the consequences of the tsunami were more like traces of a sewer break.
Vitya Lyagushkin, journalist.

While in the Maldives, I traveled around five islands that were hit by the tsunami. The trip was organized by the Maldivian travel agency with the assistance of the Maldivian government, which is very concerned that their archipelago has been treated unfairly. The fact is that in order to restore the normal functioning of the region's economy, a constant influx of tourists is needed. In the end, everything turned into a kind of propaganda war. They showed footage from Phuket, but at the same time they talked about the Maldives, although the “post-wave” situation there is radically different. There were reports from Sri Lanka, they showed the coast of India, and in the comments they added "... and the Maldives."

A group of Russian journalists was assembled to demonstrate the real state of affairs. Indeed, there was no particular destruction in the Maldives. This is due primarily to the peculiarity of the structure of the atolls. The height of the atoll's trunk is about two thousand meters. The trunk rises with sheer walls to a depth of two hundred meters, and above are the islands, which are circular formations protruding above the surface of the water by a maximum of a meter. The result - the height of the tsunami wave in the Maldives was extremely insignificant. She just had nowhere to go!

How is the Maldives organized? These are 26 large atolls, on the tops of which there are fifty to sixty islands. On the inner atolls from the side of the epicenter there was nothing at all. And on the "outer" islands, the following happened: from the hotel rooms (they were flooded), tourists were simply relocated to the inner islands. The fact is that at that time there were a lot of vacationers in the Maldives. And because of the flooded rooms, for some time tourists were accommodated in two families per room. On Paradise (the outer island of the outer atoll) there was a wave that went through the entire island, partially destroyed the bungalow and caused damage to household appliances. The wave caused panic - people put on life jackets, fins and masks (the Russians drank all the mini-bars under the guise). There were no dead. Also, during the day after the wave, mobile phones and the airport did not work (the runway turned out to be corny dirty). The mud was washed away and flights resumed. Then mobile communication was restored. Divers who were underwater during the wave did not feel anything at all. The only thing they paid attention to was the squeak of computers that reacted to a sharp drop in depth.

Tsunami.

A tsunami is not a single wave, but a series of moving ocean waves resulting from geological disturbances near or below the ocean floor. These waves are unstoppable and rush across the ocean like a whiplash, maintaining their strength for thousands of miles. Most tsunamis are caused by large earthquakes, but landslides, volcanic eruptions, and meteorite impacts can also be the cause. Waves are caused by geological forces moving water in an ocean basin. The stronger the earthquake, the more shifts in the earth's crust and the more water comes into motion.

Most often, tsunamis form in the Pacific Ocean. This is due to the fact that its pool is bordered by the "Ring of Fire" - a long chain of seismically active points on the Earth.

During a tsunami, waves usually propagate in directions opposite to seismic shocks. In the case of the earthquake near Sumatra, seismic waves moved along the ocean floor to the south and north, and the tsunami moved to the west and east.

A tsunami differs from the usual surf in its enormous length and speed. One such wave can reach 185 km in length and at the same time move across the ocean at a speed of about 1000 km/h. When it approaches the shore, its speed decreases sharply, and its height increases many times over. Some tsunamis resemble a tide in which the water does not stop rising and swallows the coast.

A few hours after an earthquake, the tsunami loses its strength due to friction with the ocean floor and simply because the waves "dissolve" into the vast surface of the ocean.

International Tsunami Warning System.

The International Tsunami Warning System was established in 1965 after a tsunami associated with a 9.2 magnitude earthquake hit Alaska in 1964. The system includes all the major states of the Pacific coast in North and South America and Asia, as well as pacific islands, Australia and New Zealand. In addition, it includes France (under the sovereignty of which there are some islands) and Russia. The warning system analyzes earthquake information from several seismological centers (including the US Geological Survey). The information, in turn, is transmitted to computer programs that simulate the formation of a tsunami. The system transmits tsunami warnings, including a forecast of the speed of the waves and the estimated time when they will appear in certain geographic areas. As tsunami waves move through tide stations, information is updated and a tsunami warning is issued. Other programs create "flood maps" that include areas of destruction. But keep in mind that not all earthquakes cause tsunamis. The center does not normally issue warnings for earthquakes less than magnitude 7.

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

Tsunami in Thailand (2004), Phuket December 26, 2004 - this day went down in history as the day of a tragedy of gigantic proportions that took a huge number of lives. At this time, the tsunami occurred in Phuket (2004). Patong, Karon, 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 Simelue Island. It set off a large series of giant waves that people around the world still remember with fear and regret. Water killers in a few hours took the lives of about 300 thousand people and caused terrible destruction on the shores of Asia.

Today, many tourists are interested in which beaches in Phuket had a tsunami. These tourists hope that the answer to this question will allow them to choose Phuket's tsunami-safe beaches. But in fact, there are no beaches in Phuket that are safe in this regard. Although the beaches in the east of the island are, in principle, safe from tsunamis (a destructive tsunami is impossible in the shallow Phang Nga Bay), a few tourists from Russia rest on these beaches.

There are different opinions about how high the tsunami wave was in Phuket in 2004. Some sources say that the wave height was about 30 meters. But if the wave had been that high, the death toll would have been much higher. In fact, the height of the wave is on average “only” 5 meters, but the fact is that this wave moved at a very high speed, which was approximately 600 km / h. Imagine what kind of impact force such a wave has. Due to the high speed of this wave, many tourists simply did not have time to escape, but the damage on these beaches was noticeably lower than on Patong and Karon.

Arriving the night before in Phuket and spending the night looking for surviving Russians in hospitals in Phuket and five surrounding provinces, on the morning of December 27, driving along a relatively intact section of the embankment in the Patong Beach area, we first saw in the light of day and realized the extent of the destruction. Completely collapsed and dilapidated houses of the first line, cars half sticking out of the windows of the third floor, and a small car wrapped around a cracked concrete pillar so that the front bumper was in contact with the rear. The bodies of the dead were no longer on the streets, there was only debris from the wooden buildings demolished by the wave and mangled cars and motorcycles, and this made the picture even more terrible: the imagination completed the missing ones. In Patong, the wave was “only” up to three to five meters high, but its speed at the moment of impact reached 500 kilometers per hour. Palm trees stood on the embankment, bare as lampposts, not broken by the wave, but completely devoid of leaves.

How were the victims of the tsunami buried in Phuket?

The story of how the victims of the tsunami in Phuket were buried deserves special mention. Phuket after the tsunami became the main gathering place for all the dead, who were brought here from other parts of Thailand. Over time, the death toll became so huge that there was nowhere to store them, as morgues, hospital basements and refrigerators were completely packed. Then it was decided to temporarily bury the unidentified bodies that were literally rotting in the sun. In the 2006 movie Tsunami: The Aftermath, there was footage of the bodies of the dead being burned in furnaces, but as far as we know, there was nothing like that. Although some of the bodies were indeed burned in ovens, these were the bodies of Thais and other Asians who practiced Buddhism. That is, these were ordinary cremation ceremonies, and not disposal of corpses.

A powerful tsunami occurred on December 26, 2004 in Thailand, at the peak of the season. Its cause is an underwater earthquake in the Indian Ocean. Until now, it is considered one of the most serious natural disasters in modern history and the third most powerful in the entire history of observation. Its power was 9.1 on the Richter scale.

The strength of the elements can be judged, if only because it backfired even in South Africa, where there were recorded waves of 1.5 m. All over the world, this event claimed the lives of hundreds of thousands of people, according to various estimates, the number of victims of the tsunami in 2004 ranged from 200,000 up to 300,000 people.

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The epicenter of the earthquake was located near the Indonesian island of Sumatra. The countries located directly next to it suffered the most: Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India, Thailand, Maldives, Myanmar, Malaysia and others. Waves 15 m high reached the coast of states in different time- to Sumatra very quickly, to India - after 1.5 hours, and to Somalia - after 7 hours. The tsunami reached the mainland of Thailand 2 hours after the earthquake.

A large number of victims is explained by a poor warning and recognition system for the tsunami. The fact is that huge waves appear only near the coast, and in the ocean they are not very high. Animals that suddenly left all coastal areas and rushed to the mountains served as a good indicator. But a person in the process of evolution lost his intuition and connection with nature, and therefore rested as if nothing had happened.

Tsunami in Thailand in 2004

The tsunami in 2004 hit the western part of Thailand, which goes into the Andaman Sea, Phuket, Phi Phi, Khao Lak, Lanta, Krabi, and the Similian Islands were badly damaged. It is estimated that about 9,000 people died, with most of them being tourists, not the local population.

Outwardly, the tsunami in Thailand in 2004 looked like this: suddenly, the water began to move away from the coast into the sea for a very long distance, and after a few minutes everyone saw giant waves approaching the coast. There were 1-2 minutes left to save. Since the wave height reached 10-15 meters, many "undersized" hotels were flooded. However, we will omit the details so as not to recall the tragedy once again. Probably everyone has seen the news footage that has spread all over the world: mangled trees, cars, trains...

Tsunami in Phuket in 2004

The tsunami affected almost the entire western coast of Phuket, where the most are located - Patong, Karon, Kamala and Kata. The infrastructure was partially destroyed - hotels, restaurants, bars, clubs. Several hundred people are estimated to have died.

Despite the fact that the tsunami in Phuket brought great destruction, the infrastructure was restored very quickly. In fact, by 2006, nothing reminded of this tragic event.

Tsunami in 2012

The tsunami in 2012 is a failed tsunami and, in a sense, even a curious incident. Many don't even know what it was. But first things first.

Should I be afraid of the tsunami in Thailand in Phuket, Phi Phi and others

Having described all the horrors of the tsunami above, many will decide not to mess with Thailand and forever deprive themselves of the joy of relaxing in the resorts of the Andaman coast. We hasten to reassure you. Our answer is unequivocal - it's not worth it. The fact is that after the tragedy of 2004, the Thai government, together with American experts, installed a deep-sea system (the largest in the world) for the early detection of tsunamis. A loudspeaker system has also been installed on the coast, which notifies the population of the approaching elements in several languages. And all this happens a couple of hours before the alleged disaster. An evacuation system has already been developed that will quickly deliver people to safe areas, away from the sea.

You ask, what about such small islands as Phi Phi, where you don’t really get away from the coast. Again, our answer is don't worry. There are huge mountains, in comparison with which the wave height of 15 meters is simply dwarfed.

The early warning system was tested on April 11, 2012, when there was a tsunami in Thailand and when the entire west coast of Phuket was evacuated, which I witnessed. So everything is fine, welcome to the resorts of the Andaman coast!

If you are still tormented by vague doubts, then relax in the resorts of the Gulf of Thailand. They are successfully protected by the Malay Peninsula from the tsunami in the Indian Ocean and by Cambodia and Vietnam from the tsunami in the Pacific Ocean. The safest are located in the very depths of the Gulf of Thailand - Pattaya, Rayong, Hua Hin, Cha Am, Samet Island and Koh Lan. If you come to Thailand for a long time and the sea is not particularly important for you, then go to the north of the country, where the worst thing that can happen is to overflow the banks of the Chao Phraya or Mekong river. Of course, this is an unpleasant event, but not fatal.