Scenes from the air of the devastation caused by the tsunami along the west of Aceh province, Indonesia. Photos: Noel Gavin, January 2005
People were beginning to wind down their Christmas celebrations when everything changed forever.
It was St Stephen’s Day, 2004, and across Asia millions of people were about to be hit by the most powerful tsunami ever recorded.
Over a quarter of a million people were killed and a further 1.5 million were left homeless. The death toll was spread over 14 countries – from Kenya to Malaysia – but the worst of the impact was felt in Indonesia, where over half the fatalities were recorded.
Trócaire immediately launched an appeal to support the emergency response of Caritas, the network of humanitarian agencies of which Trócaire is a member.
Donations from Ireland made an incredible difference to the lives of people affected.
Caritas Secretary General Michel Roy recently noted, “the waves of the tsunami took away the lives of so many, but an unprecedented wave of solidarity never known in humanitarian history unrolled on the suffering of the people.”
Over one million people were provided by emergency assistance through the joint Caritas response.
In the affected countries, the Caritas confederation:
- Built over 12,000 temporary shelters and almost 33,000 permanent ones to help rebuild their homes;
- Gave livelihood asset replacement (fishing boats, engines, nets, etc.) and vocational training to 55,000 households in India and Sri Lanka and 31,000 people in Indonesia;
- Gave over 700,000 people psychosocial support in Indonesia and Sri Lanka;
- In Indonesia completed 350 infrastructure projects such as schools, clinics, roads, and markets.
Scenes from the air of the devastation caused by the tsunami along the west of Aceh province, Indonesia. Photos: Noel Gavin, January 2005
The tsunami of 2004 was the worst disaster to hit the region, but there have been several smaller, but also disastrous, emergencies since.
Most recently, Typhoon Haiyan struck the Philippines, killing over 6,000 people.
Trócaire continues to work with partners to respond to emergencies in the region, while at the same time working with communities to defend themselves against storms and other disasters.
Globally, only one in ten of the people exposed to natural hazards live in poor countries, but they account for more than half of total deaths. Poverty equals vulnerability.
Ten years on, the images of the 2004 tsunami feel more recent than they are. Such was the magnitude of the disaster that those images will live on in memories for many years to come.
So will the generosity of people all over the world, including Ireland, whose wave of solidarity helped to ease the suffering.
