Ignorance And Neglect Costly

The earthquake that caused the devastating tsunami in the Indian Ocean on December 26 could not have been predicted. The damage caused by the disaster, however, could have been lessened, had the millions of people living along the coastlines been more concerned about nature’s destructive potential.

In 1965, UNESCO established the International Tsunami Information Center but it focused only on the Pacific. No resources were expended on an early warning system for the oceans where tsunamis are rare. Yet, we do know that in 1755 an earthquake in the Atlantic destroyed Lisbon and killed 60,000 people; and in 1883, the eruption of the Krakatoa volcano in the Sunda strait between the islands of Java and Sumatra triggered a tsunami that took 36,000 lives.

We also know that sand dunes, coral reefs, and the dense and tangled vegetation of mangroves in tropical tidal zones can function as natural buffers shielding coastal plains against the rampages of hurricanes and even tsunamis. The developers, however, who cleared land for shrimp farms, hotels, and tourist attractions did not hesitate to dynamite and bulldoze miles and miles of reefs and mangroves along the coasts of Indonesia, Thailand, and Sri Lanka over the past thirty years.

A quarter of the world’s tropical coasts used to be separated from the sea by mangrove ecosystems. Yet, according to findings by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), more than 60 percent of Asia's mangroves have been converted to aquaculture. Shrimp farming and tourism grew into the top foreign exchange earners for Southeast Asia’s coastal populations. Where the coast was shielded from the high tides by coral reefs, as in the case of the Surin Island chain along Thailand’s west coast, the impact of the tsunami was substantially lessened.

By now we also know that there were telltale signs of the approaching tsunami. Near the earthquake’s epicenter off the coast of Sumatra, people noticed the shaking of the ground but did not suspect a tsunami would strike. The Morgan sea gypsies--a group of Thai fishermen--ran to higher ground when they saw the water along the beach receding unusually fast. To them, the extreme ebb signaled that an extremely high tide, a tsunami, might be on the way.

After the tsunami had retreated, no dead or injured animals, small or large, were found along the coast. Apparently, the creatures had quickly retreated inland when they were sensing danger due to subtle signs--not detected by humans—in the ground, the air, and the water.

When a scientist at Hawaii’s tsunami warning center for the Pacific detected an earthquake measuring over 8 on the Richter scale near the west coast of Sumatra, he had no instructions to communicate this startling observation to any agency along the Indian Ocean. Yet, a prompt alert would have given the millions of people threatened by the tsunami two crucial hours to prepare and evacuate. A government agency in Bangkok heard of the earthquake but failed to notify the western beach resorts for fear that an alert would disrupt the profitable tourist season.

When the tsunami’s first tide rolled in, many people failed to take it as the forerunner of a much more devastating second wave. Far too close to the water’s edge, innumerable beachfront buildings and their occupants hardly knew what hit them when the onrushing wall of water swallowed them up.

No preparations had been made anywhere by the countries bordering the Indian Ocean for a system of warnings and evacuation procedures. A tsunami warning system for the Indian Ocean would have cost an estimated $20 million. The damage now amounts to 150,000 killed, many times more injured, and billions of dollars lost in physical destruction.

The lessons are fairly clear. In spite of all scientific and technological advances, man may still be--and will remain--at nature’s mercy. Man, moreover, has still a long way to go in understanding his physical environment and preventing the destruction of the complex balances upon which all life depends.

Wolf D. Fuhrig	Home	01-09-05
Ignorance And Neglect Costly
The earthquake that caused the devastating tsunami in the Indian Ocean on December 26 could not have been predicted. The damage caused by the disaster, however, could have been lessened, had the millions of people living along the coastlines been more concerned about nature’s destructive potential. In 1965, UNESCO established the International Tsunami Information Center but it focused only on the Pacific. No resources were expended on an early warning system for the oceans where tsunamis are rare. Yet, we do know that in 1755 an earthquake in the Atlantic destroyed Lisbon and killed 60,000 people; and in 1883, the eruption of the Krakatoa volcano in the Sunda strait between the islands of Java and Sumatra triggered a tsunami that took 36,000 lives. We also know that sand dunes, coral reefs, and the dense and tangled vegetation of mangroves in tropical tidal zones can function as natural buffers shielding coastal plains against the rampages of hurricanes and even tsunamis. The developers, however, who cleared land for shrimp farms, hotels, and tourist attractions did not hesitate to dynamite and bulldoze miles and miles of reefs and mangroves along the coasts of Indonesia, Thailand, and Sri Lanka over the past thirty years. A quarter of the world’s tropical coasts used to be separated from the sea by mangrove ecosystems. Yet, according to findings by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), more than 60 percent of Asia's mangroves have been converted to aquaculture. Shrimp farming and tourism grew into the top foreign exchange earners for Southeast Asia’s coastal populations. Where the coast was shielded from the high tides by coral reefs, as in the case of the Surin Island chain along Thailand’s west coast, the impact of the tsunami was substantially lessened. By now we also know that there were telltale signs of the approaching tsunami. Near the earthquake’s epicenter off the coast of Sumatra, people noticed the shaking of the ground but did not suspect a tsunami would strike. The Morgan sea gypsies--a group of Thai fishermen--ran to higher ground when they saw the water along the beach receding unusually fast. To them, the extreme ebb signaled that an extremely high tide, a tsunami, might be on the way. After the tsunami had retreated, no dead or injured animals, small or large, were found along the coast. Apparently, the creatures had quickly retreated inland when they were sensing danger due to subtle signs--not detected by humans—in the ground, the air, and the water. When a scientist at Hawaii’s tsunami warning center for the Pacific detected an earthquake measuring over 8 on the Richter scale near the west coast of Sumatra, he had no instructions to communicate this startling observation to any agency along the Indian Ocean. Yet, a prompt alert would have given the millions of people threatened by the tsunami two crucial hours to prepare and evacuate. A government agency in Bangkok heard of the earthquake but failed to notify the western beach resorts for fear that an alert would disrupt the profitable tourist season. When the tsunami’s first tide rolled in, many people failed to take it as the forerunner of a much more devastating second wave. Far too close to the water’s edge, innumerable beachfront buildings and their occupants hardly knew what hit them when the onrushing wall of water swallowed them up. No preparations had been made anywhere by the countries bordering the Indian Ocean for a system of warnings and evacuation procedures. A tsunami warning system for the Indian Ocean would have cost an estimated $20 million. The damage now amounts to 150,000 killed, many times more injured, and billions of dollars lost in physical destruction. The lessons are fairly clear. In spite of all scientific and technological advances, man may still be--and will remain--at nature’s mercy. Man, moreover, has still a long way to go in understanding his physical environment and preventing the destruction of the complex balances upon which all life depends.

Wolf D. Fuhrig

Home

01-09-05

Ignorance And Neglect Costly