Worst Ever

There's no official word yet, but from what I know it's true.

Sunday's Boxing Day tsunamis are now the worst ever tidal wave disaster in modern history. When Krakatoa blew in 1883, the resulting tidal waves took out 36,000 people. And in 1896, another tsunami struck Japan killing around 27,000 people. One wave was 125ft high.

Up till this hour, the toll for Sunday's cataclysm now stands at 40,000. And the numbers are still climbing. So now we have a new number one.

Not a good record to have.

There's not a lot anyone can do about tsunamis and tidal waves. You could put up sensors and buoys. You could have monitoring and warning systems. But how fast can you react. Tidal waves can travel at 800 miles per hour. Can you evacuate whole communities in one hour ?

So what can you do ? Against Mother Earth herself ? Not a lot. Her wrath is undeniable and unstoppable.

I was talking about this just now with some colleagues and we came up with a survival tip. If you're on a beach and you see the ocean suddenly recede at an unnaturally fast rate, RUN LIKE HELL.

Receding waterlines are the surest sign of a tidal wave. Remember that. Don't trust your life with some warning system I say. They're only as reliable as the equipment and the people who operate them. And as we all know, people and equipment can fail.

So keep an eye out this weekend right ? I know lots of people will be at the seaside on New Years' Eve. Including myself.

Also I found this link. And many others like it. So do what you can.