20 Years After Devastating Tsunami, Families Still Grieve as Experts Warn of Complacency

Twenty years after the Indian Ocean tsunami devastated coastal communities across Southeast Asia, the pain remains raw for families like that of Cut Sylvia and Budi Permana, Al Jazeera reports.

The 2004 tsunami, triggered by a massive 9.1 magnitude earthquake, remains the deadliest and most destructive in recorded history. While significant strides have been made in tsunami research, early warning systems, and coastal defenses since the disaster, experts are expressing serious concerns about growing complacency as memories of the devastation fade.

This concern was highlighted at a recent symposium in London, where leading tsunami experts gathered to mark the 20th anniversary of the disaster. Just a day prior, a magnitude 7 earthquake off the US West Coast triggered a tsunami alert, sending a stark reminder of the ever-present threat.

One significant development in tsunami research is the creation of a prototype machine called the “Tsunami Twin Wave”, designed to model the complex movements of tsunami waves. The project aims to fill a “huge knowledge gap” by examining the impact of both incoming and outgoing waves, helping to better understand how they cause destruction. Researchers at the MAKEWAVES project have found they are “always fighting the lack of funding,” despite the rising threat due to climate change and its impact on sea levels.

Adding to the sense of urgency, seismologist Phil Cummins, who “essentially predicted” the 2004 tsunami, warned that a new mega-tsunami could occur at any time. In 2003, he had called for expanded alert systems in the Indian Ocean, citing historical records of large earthquakes and tsunamis off the coast of Sumatra. His warnings, presented to experts in 2004, proved tragically accurate, though the 2004 earthquake epicenter was not exactly where he expected it to be. “I was shocked,” said Cummins of the event.

Cummins now believes the area near Padang, Indonesia, a city south of the 2004 epicenter, is still the “number one place” for a major earthquake and tsunami to occur.

Rina Suryani Oktari, a professor in Banda Aceh, echoed these concerns, saying that cheap land prices have drawn many back to high-risk coastal areas.

Both Cummins and Oktari pointed out that while progress has been made with early warning systems, those living closest to an earthquake’s epicentre would still have very little time to react to a tsunami.