Tsunami hits South India

[TATrader]

Tsunami hits South India

Anybody from these areas?

At least 74 people were killed and 400 fishermen feared missing after a tsunami hit the southern Indian coast early on Sunday, police and government officials said.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh voiced concern at the disaster and asked Oil Minister Mani Shankar Aiyar and Communications Minister Dayanidhi Maran to visit affected areas to supervise rescue and relief work, the prime minister's spokesman said.

The tsunami swept the coasts of the southern states of Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh and crashed into neighbouring Sri Lanka after a powerful earthquake in the Indian Ocean.

"The PM has alerted the navy and India has offered all assistance to Sri Lanka, including deployment of navy for rescue and relief," the spokesman said.

Off Andhra Pradesh, about 400 fishermen were feared missing, the chief secretary of the state, Mohan Kanda, told Reuters.

Tremors lasting less than a minute were felt shortly before 7:00 a.m. and the sea water began rising soon afterwards, washing away beach houses on the Madras coast and crashing onto the road in some parts.

"I felt like I was on a train. I turned around and I saw that a small glass table with a flower vase was shaking," said Madras resident Rajani Unni.

"We saw people rushing away from fishermen colonies lining the beach. Women were wailing and crying."

Some bodies had already been recovered.

"Thirty-four are dead and 14 are admitted in hospital," said an official at the Government Royapettah Hospital in Chennai, formerly known as Madras and the capital of Tamil Nadu state.

Ten more bodies were found in Prakasam district in Andhra Pradesh and another 10 in Machalipatnam district, taking the total death toll in the state to 40, said Usha Rani, municipal commissioner of the city of Vijaywada.

The navy and Coast Guard have begun search operations for fishermen who were at sea, officials said.

"Panic evacuation in the low-lying areas of Vishakapatnam city has caused major traffic disruption and snapped communication lines," Usha Rani said.

Police in Tamil Nadu said about 2,000 fishermen had been evacuated from Elliot's Beach area in Madras and most of the dead were fishermen.

At Elliot's Beach in Madras, 200 police had been deployed for rescue operations.

Among worst-hit areas was an industrial belt in northern Madras that is home to automobile, industrial and chemical factories, another official said.

 

[snowy]

Hi,

It was really a not very nice sunday morning since it started with mild tremors around 6.40 am. But none of us took those tremors seriously since we have experienced such things just 2 - 3 years before and we just cheked up on our relatives to ascertain that there was no major damage. Imagine our horror when suddenly we were hit with the news that tidal waves are inundating our beach and people are running for their lives !! Nobody even old enough to remember the earlier ones which had apparently struck the coast some 65 years back. My parents live near the coast and since this episode started, we became frantic to contact them. Thankfully, they were safe, but it was quite some time before the waves stopped and we were waiting with baited breath for the whole thing to stop and the waters reached the street next to my parent's home. Imagine hearing that the waters are now in the church, then the school where I studied, my uncle's street etc. and many people whom we know missing etc. and what a horrible sight with people running here and there and the death toll rising !! And the uncertainty if there will be another one within two days as predicted by the geologists !! God !! Nature's fury !! And the whole time my brother in US was frantic and lines from India to US were very busy and we could not contact him and finally he reached us around 3 pm !! But thanks to friends who kept each other posted he knew that they were safe.

I hope not to see another day like this again. But even in this one thing that was heartening was to see people helping even strangers in whatever small way they can.

Regards,
Snowy.

 

[jaideep]

Hi,

It was really a not very nice sunday morning since it started with mild tremors around 6.40 am. But none of us took those tremors seriously since we have experienced such things just 2 - 3 years before and ..................ast and since this episode started, we became frantic to contact them. Thankfully, they were safe, but it was quite some time before the waves stopped and we were waiting with baited breath for the whole thing to stop and the waters reached the street next to my parent's home. Imagine hearing that the waters are now in the church, then the school where I studied, my uncle's street etc. and many people whom we know missing etc. and what a horrible sight with people running here and there and the death toll rising !! And the uncertainty if there will be another one within two days as predicted by the geologists !! God !! Nature's fury !! And the whole time my brother in US was frantic .......... not to see another day like this again. But even in this one thing that was heartening was to see people helping even strangers in whatever small way they can.

Regards,
Snowy.

Forgive me for slipping up on this post of your's Snowy. 27th Dec was just the day after & my mind was on other things, just like the one's that occupied your mind. Everything you said sounds so familiar. That was & is until today, the central theme around here as it were. I sincerely hope all's well with your kin & friends. All your sentiments expressed above are reciprocated in equal measure. Pray 2005 will be a better year by far, not fiscally alone but more importantly Nature's benevolence.