Big tsunami in Thailand. Phuket - tsunami (2004): history and consequences. Damage and losses

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The Indian Army, Air Force and Navy were on full alert on Thursday morning following a warning of new destructive tsunami. Not far from the epicenter of the first earthquake, in the area of ​​​​the Andaman and Nicobar islands in the east of the country, strong tremors measuring 5.2 on the Richter scale were again recorded. The government announced the evacuation of the population. The warning will be in effect for 48 hours.

At this time, in Indonesia, military personnel involved in search and rescue operations are digging giant mass graves on the island with bulldozers.

In Thailand, it has not yet been possible to establish contact with 43 Russian citizens who were in the disaster zone on the resort island of Phuket. This was stated on Thursday by the press secretary of the Russian Embassy in Thailand, Irina Borisyuk. “We do not exclude the possibility of new victims among Russian citizens,” the spokeswoman noted. “There are a lot of unidentified bodies from which it is impossible to understand who they are.”

Earlier on Wednesday, Thai authorities released a list of those killed on the resort island of Phuket. Among the 435 dead foreigners - 8 Russians. However, as Irina Borisyuk reported, the Foreign Ministry assumes that “this erroneous information appeared as a result of inaccurate information provided by the island’s medical institutions.”

But the number of Russians in Thailand, with whom everything is fine, has already grown to 590 people. Thanks to information from relatives, it became known about a new group of 52 people who theoretically could have ended up in the disaster zone, but whose exact location at the time of the tsunami was unknown, RIA Novosti reports.

Currently, there are four employees of the Russian diplomatic mission on the resort island popular among our compatriots, who work in close contact with the Thai authorities.

On Thursday, a large group of Russian citizens will fly from Phuket by plane of the Ministry of Emergency Situations, she added. To date, 80 Russians have expressed a desire to take advantage of this opportunity, Borisyuk said.

The total number of missing foreigners in Thailand so far is about 5,300.

The total death toll from the earthquake and tsunami in 11 countries and territories in the Indian Ocean basin has risen to 123,000.

And the final death toll could be more than 250 thousand. Only in Indonesia, according to official data from the country's Ministry of Health, 79,940 people died. According to unofficial data, about 80 thousand people died on the western coast of the Indonesian island of Sumatra alone, which was most affected by tidal waves-tsunamis and magnitude 9 tremors. In some parts of the Indonesian province of Aceh, according to rescuers, one in four residents could have died. And this province is inhabited by 4.3 million people.

The World Health Organization (WHO) also warns that tens of thousands more people could die as a result of epidemics if the bodies of the dead cannot be quickly buried.

Official death toll is 123,181:

List of dead foreigners:

Meanwhile, according to reports coming from resorts on the Andaman Sea coast, more than 6,500 people could have died there. More than half of all deaths occurred in Pangna province.

“At the moment we have a huge number of missing people - about 6 thousand people, most likely at least 80% of this number died,” said Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra.

According to reports from the disaster areas in Sumatra, the city of Maulabon with a population of 40 thousand inhabitants was practically wiped off the face of the earth. Last Sunday, he found himself just 149 km from the epicenter of the strongest tectonic cataclysm in 100 years.

Meanwhile, rescuers and representatives of humanitarian organizations still cannot get to Maulabona, since all approaches to it from land are cut off: roads and bridges are destroyed, gorges are blocked with rock, rivers are dammed with fallen trees and sand.

In the provincial capital of Aceh, located at the westernmost tip of Sumatra, authorities estimate that at least 15,000 residents, or 5 percent of its 300,000 population, have died.

The island of Sumatra is located on the border of two tectonic plates - huge sections of the earth's crust that are in constant motion. The plate on which the Indian Ocean is located moves to the northeast by 10-12 cm per year and goes under the island, since it is heavier than the Sumatran plate.

Huge potential energy accumulates between them. Eventually one of the plates splits, causing earthquakes. This time, the length of the crack in the tectonic plate was about 1 thousand km, when one of the plates dropped almost 10 meters.

A sharp drop in seabed level caused a tsunami.

In just a few minutes, the entire coastline with many hotels, bars and restaurants located on it turned into a real disaster zone with hundreds of dead, including both tourists and local residents. Many of those who suffered from the tsunami on the island of Phuket could have avoided the tragedy if they knew what was happening and immediately took rescue measures by going deeper into the island towards the nearest hill. But instead, many went towards the sea, which had retreated several kilometers, where they were caught by the second quickly approaching destructive tsunami wave.

Video of the tsunami on Nai Harn beach. Shooting from the All Seasons Hotel.

As for the Phi Phi Islands, it was much more difficult to escape there. The thin strip of land on which the entire infrastructure was located completely went under water for some time, so only those who were on the upper floors of the buildings that withstood the blow were able to escape; the rest were simply carried away into the sea.

In the Khao Lak area of ​​Phangan province on the coast of the Andaman Sea, the wave reached a height of 10-15 meters and, destroying everything in its path, went inland to a distance of two kilometers. Most of the tourists and hotel workers who were on the first floors of the buildings at that time drowned; mainly those who were lucky enough to be on the upper floors at that time managed to escape.

Video of the 2004 tsunami from Karon Beach, Golden Sand Inn

The tsunami in Thailand became one of the largest natural disasters in modern history, which claimed the lives of more than 200 thousand people. 5,395 people have died in Thailand, most of them foreign tourists.

On December 26, 2004 at 00:58 UTC, in the depths of the Indian Ocean, near the island of Simeulue in Indonesia, an earthquake with a magnitude of 9.1 - 9.3 on the Richter scale occurred.

This earthquake led to a vertical displacement of astronomically large volumes of water on the bottom line, stretching hundreds and thousands of kilometers. It generated a series of waves that brought terrible destruction to the shores of Asia within a few hours - it was the worst natural disaster to hit the resort country of Thailand, causing serious damage to property, the environment and the economy.

How often do tsunamis happen in Thailand?

Not often in Thailand. The fact is that in order for the resulting waves to acquire threatening proportions, a number of conditions must coincide:

• earthquake of more than 7 points;
• the epicenter of the earthquake is close to the bottom surface;
• significant vertical displacement of parts of the bottom relative to each other;
• the shock caused by the earthquake must resonate with the vibration of the water.

Often, traces of a tsunami are recorded only by special equipment: the waves generated as a result of an earthquake are several centimeters high and are invisible to people.

For example, this was the case in 2012, when an earthquake was recorded near the western coast of Thailand, namely near Sumatra, Indian Ocean. The alarm was declared and an evacuation was carried out on the island of Phuket.

The wave that arrived was only 10 cm in height: fortunately, no disaster occurred.

But the natural force came back at the height of the 2004 tourist season, causing the so-called Great Indian Ocean Tsunami. The first wave reached the western coast 2 hours after the earthquake. Unlike Sumatra, Thailand is lucky because... the shallowness of the Andaman Sea slowed down the movement of the wave. If the system for responding to such situations were well-functioning, it would be possible to notify about the approaching danger in advance and, if not to start evacuation, then at least make sure that people climbed to higher ground and did not walk along the shore. The video shows in detail what kind of swelling this led to.

Thailand has never known such large-scale natural disasters in its modern history. The previous one, which was recorded in the sources, occurred more than 700 years ago.

Does the tsunami rescue system work in Thailand?

The rescue system in Thailand began to be created after the events of 2004. It consists of two parts:

• warning of an impending wave;
• evacuation of the population and tourists.

In 2012, the opportunity arose to test the operation of the rescue system. According to reviews from tourists who were in Phuket in Thailand at that time, not everyone was able to evacuate. However, the warning system worked: tourists and hotel employees climbed to the roofs of buildings, those who made it in time went to higher ground. That carefree and curious wandering along the shore that was observed in 2004 (watch the video) did not happen.

What to do if a tsunami happens

1. Be calm. Even if there was an official tsunami warning in Thailand, no one knows how strong the wave will reach the shore. The likelihood of a repeat of the 2004 scenario is low. In addition, today Thailand has one of the most powerful tsunami early warning systems in the world.

2. If there was no warning, and the sea suddenly “removed”, it means that the rescue system in Thailand is not working again - unlikely. Drop everything and run away, following the signs.

4. There are always several waves. There may be a break of more than an hour between them.

5. Going down to the shore is dangerous, even if everything seems to have calmed down.

When going on a trip, you should learn not only about the beauties and attractions of your chosen place, but also about the possible dangers that may await you there. For example, what do you know about tsunami in Thailand?

There is no country in Southeast Asia that is safer in terms of crime than Thailand. But in terms of the danger of natural conditions, it is among the leaders. There you can meet both, and. But all these dangers pale in comparison to what lurks in the depths of the oceans – the Pacific and Indian, the waters of which wash the country’s shores. A tsunami in Thailand is considered one of the most likely natural disasters. They are rare, but even once is enough to make you shudder at the mention of them for the rest of your life. The feature film “The Impossible” about the tsunami in Thailand makes an indelible impression even on the most thick-skinned. The reality was even worse.

Origin of the tsunami

Tsunamis are waves generated by underwater earthquakes, volcanic eruptions or large explosions. At enormous speed, they disperse in concentric circles from the site of a natural disaster, and are practically invisible in open waters and great depths. However, when approaching shallow water, these waves begin to slow down and grow, supported by the mass of associated water. Their height can reach several tens of meters. A mountain of water crashes onto the shore and washes away everything in its path.

Are there tsunamis in Thailand? All the islands located east and south of the coast of this country - Japanese, Philippine, Sumatra, Java, Kalimantan, New Guinea and Solomon - are the western branch of the so-called Pacific Ring of Fire. These are volcanic faults with constant seismic activity, which is the root cause of tsunamis.

Several conditions are necessary for their formation. A place for acceleration and a sharp drop in depth towards decrease are required. They arise in places of so-called wave focusing - narrow bays along the axis of the front movement, or in the presence of islands of different sizes, which provoke the occurrence of wave resonance and become sources of secondary oscillations.

In Thailand, such conditions are more consistent with the western coast of the Malacca Peninsula (Andaman Sea). Therefore, a tsunami is most likely in Phuket. The Gulf of Thailand is wide and shallow over a long distance, which is why the seismic wave is dampened.

Why is a tsunami more dangerous than a storm?

Storm waves tens of meters high are not that uncommon on ocean coasts. And they are also capable of causing significant damage, but only in a limited area. Unlike tsunamis, the front of which can reach hundreds and thousands of kilometers - the further from the epicenter, the greater.

They also differ in energy saturation. A storm wave is generated by wind, which captures only the surface layers. Therefore, the mass of the raised water is less than that which is pushed forward by the tsunami coming from the bottom. In addition, the speed of wave propagation also differs. For storms, it does not exceed 100 km/h, and a seismic shock accelerates them to 1000 km/h. Therefore, tsunamis have hundreds of times more kinetic energy, which develops into potential energy when the movement slows down in shallow water and in front of obstacles.

Possessing greater energy, seismic waves are able to penetrate much further into the coast, and they can only be extinguished by objects of similar mass - mountains, hills. Everything else is swept away like trash from a table.

Hurricanes and storms are visible from space and are easy to warn about. A tsunami looks like a light ripple, it is almost invisible. Therefore, her blow is almost always unexpected.

How to escape a tsunami

In most cases, a tsunami is generated by an earthquake whose epicenter is below the ocean floor. Its strength is more than seven on the Richter scale. It feels good. If you are in a danger zone, you need to do the following:

1. If you feel an earthquake, do not wait for a warning. Collect your things, documents, do not lose sight of your companions.
2. Try to go as far from the coast as possible, and if this is not possible, then find a high place, preferably of natural origin - a hill, rock, mountain, and climb it.
3. If you are unfamiliar with the area, follow the signs indicating escape routes.
4. An unusually strong ebb tide - several hundred meters or even kilometers - is the main sign of an approaching seismic wave.
5. The first tsunami wave is not the most powerful. The second and third are much more dangerous. Therefore, do not leave a safe place until the water recedes completely. This usually takes up to 10 hours.

2004 Thailand Tsunami

2004 Thailand Tsunami was a consequence of the vertical seismic shift of the plates of the subcontinents in the area of ​​the so-called Java Trench - this is the western coast of the island of Sumatra. The wave front moved in a wide arc from Banda Aceh to Jakarta towards the island of Sri Lanka. The consequences of the cataclysm were the death of about 300 thousand people in 14 countries (the tsunami reached India and Madagascar) along the shores of the Indian Ocean. The largest number of dead tourists in Thailand occurred in , which took the blow of a wave reflected from the northwestern tip of the island of Sumatra near the city of Banda Aceh (it was completely wiped off the face of the Earth).

Causes of mass deaths from the 2004 tsunami in Thailand

During the tsunami in Thailand in 2004, 8 thousand 500 people died. The main reason for the tragedy was that the island authorities did not assess the danger of a tsunami in Phuket and did not take any measures, even in the presence of clear signs of an impending disaster.

• The time interval between subjectively felt tremors and the arrival of the wave was two hours - from eight to ten in the morning. There was no warning or evacuation of people.
• Nobody knew anything. Even the aborigines went to collect fish and other sea life after the water went several hundred meters from the shore. Tourists took selfies until the last moment. These were the first people killed in the tsunami in Thailand.

The film "The Impossible" about the tsunami in Thailand

The film “The Impossible” about the tsunami in Thailand was filmed 8 years later. The plot is based on the misadventures of a young family caught in the center of events. The director's drama turned out to be convincing. However, we believe that the artistic value of the painting is higher than its practical value. She cannot teach anything. The film did not reveal the cause of the mass death of people, and only the authorities are to blame for this. Having received a warning from the seismic data analysis center, they did not take any measures to evacuate the population, although there was enough time for this. Perhaps they hoped for “maybe” and were afraid to once again escalate the situation in the country.

The film “The Impossible” leaves a feeling of hopelessness and powerlessness of man before the wrath of Nature. After watching, you may get the impression that it is better to stay at home. No attention is paid to storylines that tell us that the tragedy could have been prevented, as well as how to act correctly in such situations.

Measures taken after the tragedy

The Thai authorities, albeit belatedly, took measures to prevent such tragedies in the future. Buoys have been installed in the Andaman Sea to record high-velocity water flows. All resorts and cities on the coast have a tsunami warning system, evacuation schemes and procedures for the authorities to ensure it have been developed. There are full houses everywhere

The likelihood of a tsunami in Thailand and a story from the past about a tsunami in the south of the country: in Phuket, Krabi and on Phi Phi Island in 2004.

Thailand could rightfully be called a kind of paradise, but due to some natural disasters, this title cannot be assigned to the country. We are talking about phenomena such as tsunamis. Such a natural disaster, unfortunately, once happened on the coast of the Andaman Sea.

Causes of tsunamis in the Andaman Sea

The tsunami on the coast of Thailand is caused by large earthquakes in the Indian Ocean. Unfortunately, the warning system does not always manage to report danger in a timely manner due to various reasons, and in 2004 Thailand did not even think about such phenomena.

The tsunami in Thailand in 2004 claimed the lives of more than two hundred thousand people...

The main problem with earthquakes in the open ocean is the propagation of waves over significant distances. A giant wave can gain its destructive power in open space. The closest areas where this natural phenomenon may occur are the Philippines and Indonesia. That is, the sources of the first are the seismological zones of the Pacific Ocean, and in the second case, the Indian Ocean.

Eyewitness video of the 2004 tsunami in Thailand

Another video.

Probability of tsunami in Pattaya

It should be noted that the Indochina Peninsula blocks access to the Gulf of Thailand and the likelihood of a tsunami in Thailand in this area is low. Therefore, those who are traveling to, on, and other resorts in the Gulf of Thailand need to worry less than those who are going to Phi Phi and other southern islands.

A national center that deals with natural disaster prevention operates uninterruptedly in the country. It began to function after the memorable events of 2004. The center constantly monitors seismic activity and warns of the slightest changes in the seismic sphere. Therefore, it is important to listen to local media while in Thailand, especially if you are in the southern part of the Kingdom.

Photo: Arlette Stuip. 2004 tsunami in Khao Lak, Thailand. The photo was taken in December by a married couple who managed to survive.

What you need to know about tsunamis

1. Do not ignore newspapers and the Internet with local news, sometimes this can help protect yourself and your loved ones.
2. Another way to recognize an impending tsunami is through changes in the marine environment. If you see that something unusual is happening at sea, then do not waste time and immediately leave the dangerous zone. For example, before a tsunami there is always a huge ebb of water from the shore - the seabed begins to be exposed and after a while giant waves cover the entire coastal area.
3. Wild animals sense the approach of a tsunami. A change in their behavior also indicates an impending threat. Of course, these changes are visible to the eye of an experienced person; the same cannot be said about a tourist. And still try to notice for yourself a sharp change in the behavior of animals. The instincts of elephants or birds are worth relying on. This is especially well observed in zoos, where the internal warning system of animals changes the nature of their behavior to alarming. During the tsunami in Phuket, some people were saved by elephants, who, sensing danger, began to run away from the shore and thus saved the people who were riding them at that time.

The human definition system is not so well developed, and we can only rely on data from specialists. Usually, a visual determination indicates that there is very little time for evacuation and that it is necessary to act extremely quickly. Therefore, I recommend thinking in advance about your individual options for evacuating from the danger zone.

Take precautions and take care of yourself. Have a nice holiday!