Condolences to the victims of the Indonesia quake

Emiricol · Dec 26, 2004

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6754820/

9,000 dead and counting from the larged earthquake in the world since the 1960s Alaska quake. The tital wave caused massive damage in India, Sri Lanka and Thailand, including wiping out the Thai resorts that account for 40% of the nations annual income.

I'm sure more news will come, and I am sure they could all use our prayers or good wishes.

-Emiricol

Emiricol · Dec 26, 2004

johnsemlak · Dec 26, 2004

I know two people currently vacationing in Thailand at the moment. It looks terrible. Man

Wombat · Dec 26, 2004

This is one of the saddest stories I have read in years, and given what has been in the news the last couple of years, that is going some.

Five nations hit the tidal waves stemming from an 8.9 quake (I can't even imagine that high).

Anyone who has a few dollars to spare should give what you can to the aid agencies that will be moving into the area. Such devestation deserves our sympathy and our support for reconstruction.

Krug · Dec 26, 2004

Terrifying the amount of devastation done. The victims never stood much of a chance.

s/LaSH · Dec 26, 2004

Terrible thing, indeed. May recovery come soon to the devastated.

There was an 8.1 three days ago somewhere between New Zealand, Australia, and Antarctica. If my geographic charts are right, that's pretty much on the south side of the big Indian/Australian tectonic plate... and Sumatra is on the north side of that plate. Could be that one end, then the other, got pushed along.

Unfortunately, I'm on the east side of that plate here in New Zealand, in a city which was built around a harbour formed by a continental rift (more or less). We have an airport today which, 200 years ago, was a second entrance to the harbour, that's how violent the land motions can get. I just hope nothing happens here... a northwards trend shouldn't mean much in the east/west situation we have here. I hope.

Chaos Drake · Dec 27, 2004

Peace to all those who lost their lives, and to the thousands of homeless. Please donate to the Red Cross to help victims of this horrifying disaster.

Greylock · Dec 27, 2004

Deaths from this now in Somalia for gosh-sakes. When I went to work, the death toll was 7000. Now it's in excess of 13,000. Horrific.

And as to the Red Cross, ALWAYS donate to the Red Cross. Not just in times of need, always. There is no other disaster relief organisation on the planet that performs like they do. They often show up before the National Guard or the state or Feds in the US. And although they are religiously affiliated, they are not prostelytisers, and they are open-minded, relatively. I feel I will owe them for the rest of my life, for how they helped me in the Flood of '93.

Klaus · Dec 27, 2004

I sincerely hope some good can come out of this tragedy. Namely, that the UN and the countries affected (from India all the way to Indonesia) establish a Tsunami Alarm System (like the US has in the Pacific to warn the Hawaiian Islands) and an evacuation plan. It's the only way to save lives in the future.

And yes, please donate to the Red Cross/Star/Crescent.