Figure: This natural color, 60-centimeter (2-foot) high-resolution QuickBird satellite image, shows receding waters from the Tsunami, which struck on December 26, 2004, on the southwestern coast of Sri Lanka.
Exactly 4 years ago, Sri Lanka & many parts of South & South-East Asia were badly hit by a Tsunami. More than 35,000 Sri Lankans lost their lives & several millions of people lost all their belongings & loved ones. This was the worst natural catastrophe faced by Sri Lanka.
I myself had a narrow shave. There was news going around that the sea was looking strange & unusually calm. Hence a few of us went down to the Dehiwela beach, which was just a few hundred meters away from my house, to have a look at the sea. At that time, we did not know anything about the characteristics of a Tsunami. At the beach, a wise old man informed us that this is not a good sign, and that we can expect a large wave in a few minutes. We decided to take his advice seriously and hurriedly left the place. 5 minutes after we reached home, we heard loud cries & saw people running helter-skelter. We were able to see the waves, which were about 5 feet high, from our house. Fortunately, the waves did not reach our house.
This blog post is a dedication to all the people who lost their lives & their loved ones in this catastrophe.
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