ASIAN EARTHQUAKE AND TSUNAMI
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March 29, 2005
A magnitude 9.0 earthquake, centered about 100 miles west of the Indonesian island of Sumatra, 6.2 miles under the Indian Ocean, struck at around 7AM local time Sunday, December 26, 2004 (7PM ET Saturday, December 25). The earthquake triggered a series of tsunamis (tidal waves) that sent walls of water crashing into at least half a dozen countries across Southern Asia. Several powerful aftershocks followed the initial quake, one of magnitude 7.2.
On March 28, 2005 another powerful earthquake measuring 8.7 on the Richter scale occurred along the same fault line near the coast of northern Sumatra, Indonesia. While early reports from the region suggest that as many 2,000 people may have been killed by structures collapsed by the quake itself, the more recent event did not produce a tsunami.
Statistics published in March 2005 put the number of dead and missing from the December 26 event at more than 300,000. Thousands were injured and millions more left homeless after extensive flooding swamped the coastal areas of countries including Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Maldive Islands, Myanmar, Somalia, Sri Lanka, and Thailand. Property damage to residential and commercial buildings was extensive.
While the economic losses from the Asian tsunami were substantial, the insurance losses arising from this event were modest. The following paper titled “Asian Earthquake and Tsunami: An Insurance Perspective” explains why.
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