20 years after the massive Indian Ocean tsunami Premium

Indian Ocean tsunami 2004: Former Indian Navy Officer Commodore G Prakash reflects on the 2004 Asian tsunami, emphasizing the importance of disaster response and management.

The terrible memories of the Asian tsunami of December 26, 2004 may never fade away from the minds of the millions of its victims and the people who worked to provide relief and rehabilitation in the immediate aftermath of the huge tragedy.

Memories that may never fade are of the initial phases, where the victims’ struggle to understand what was happening to them and their desperate look for their near and dear ones and where governments and other agencies tried to assess the damage and provide immediate relief.

Having been part of the rehabilitation works in Galle, Sri Lanka, my memories of those days remain as fresh as ever. Twenty years down the line, what lessons linger? What must be remembered?

Since nature does not acknowledge manmade social classes, the tsunami dealt its destruction evenly across society. From the mighty authorities to the man on the street, everyone was trauma-stricken. Life and property had been simply rubbed out of a swathe of land adjoining the seas. Fishing boats dumped ashore as piles of broken timber, warships that lay capsized after having been lifted high out of the water and slammed back onto jetties, heavy trucks that had flown away as if made of paper, a strong naval base destroyed beyond what any enemy could have done, thousands of buildings reduced to rubble and a large populace bereft of any emotion, forced to lean on any helping hand that anyone could provide.

Regardless of any structures made for the purpose, the military will always remain the primary and the most effective responders in any disaster. It is their sheer discipline, ability to perform through the fog of war, effective command and control structures, their mastery over every trade essential for working amidst destruction and the subsequent reconstruction, the ready availability of massive quantities of provisions that are meant for their own use and their never-say-die attitude are what lead to their perennial perch as the most effective responders. This is what came to be of use during the 2004 tsunami too.

India’s immediate, massive and selfless response which reached help to Indonesia, Sri Lanka and Maldives despite the massive destruction at the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, and along the coasts of Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka, was something the world sat up and took notice of.

The Army, the Navy and the Air Force delivered a performance that had a great impact on an array of areas. For instance, the Indian Navy had its aircraft landing in Sri Lanka within hours of the tragedy to deliver relief material. Indian Navy’s hydrographic ships reached foreign ports within 24 hours, cleared sunken craft from the path, and established navigable channels into harbours. Other warships brought in personnel and capacities of immediate use. The Navy and the Army flew in massive reconstruction teams, specialist teams and medical teams to provide wholesome services in conjunction with what the warships had brought.