The 9.0-magnitude earthquake that struck off the northern coast of Sumatra at 0058 GMT on 26 December 2004 triggered a series of tsunamis that killed close to 120,000 people across a dozen countries within four days. The quake, the most powerful recorded globally since a 9.5-magnitude tremor in Chile in 1960, sent waves as high as 10 meters crashing into coastlines from Indonesia to East Africa.
Indonesia bore the heaviest toll, with at least 27,000 confirmed dead in Aceh province. Sri Lanka lost more than 17,000 people along 800 kilometers of coastline; India reported 8,500 killed. Thailand's resort beaches at Phuket and Khao Lak saw nearly 1,500 dead, more than 700 of them foreign tourists. The Andaman and Nicobar islands recorded 4,000 killed and 30,000 missing.
By 29 December the toll had surpassed 80,000, and the World Health Organization warned that disease spreading through displaced communities could rival the waves in lethality. An estimated five million people lost their homes.
International relief pledges reached 250 million euros by 30 December. The United States established a four-nation coordination coalition with Australia, India, and Japan, a move that drew friction with the United Nations and European governments over who should lead the response.
Historical summary. TurkishPress restated this AFP wire report, first published in December 2004, in its own words.