This is the fourth largest earthquake in the world since 1900 and is the largest since the 1964 Prince William Sound, Alaska earthquake. The earthquake caused severe damage and casualties in northern Sumatra, Indonesia and in the Nicobar Islands, India. More than 297,248 people were either killed or listed as missing and presumed dead and 1,126,900 were displaced by the earthquake and subsequent tsunami in 13 countries in South Asia and East Africa. The estimated economic losses exceeded $10 billion (Reference #1610).
227,898 dead or missing. No one knows how many died in the earthquake as the tsunamis overtook the rescuers. The best estimate is that the death toll was the same as for the earthquake that struck the islands of Nias and Simuele three months later on 28 March (ie, about 1,000 people). (reference #3969)
Approximately 250,000 lives were lost. (reference #3757)
The earthquake was felt at the following selected localities (reference #1053):
Earthquake Intensities
Country
MMI Intensity
Location
Indonesia:
IX
Banda Aceh
VIII
Meulaboh
IV
Medan, Sampali
III
Bukittinggi, Parapat, Payakumbuh
Felt
Jakarta
India:
VII
Port Blair, Andaman Is.
IV
Madras
III
Bengaluru, Vishakhapatnam
Felt
Bangalore, Bhubaneshwar, Calcutta, Kochi
Malaysia:
V
Gelugor Estate
IV
Sungai Ara
III
Alor Setar, George Town, Kampong Tanjong Bunga, Kuala Lumpur, Kulim
Thailand:
V
Hat Yai
IV
Bangkok
III
Chiang Mai, Phuket
Myanmar:
IV
Mandalay
III
Rangoon
Singapore:
II
Singapore
Bangladesh:
III
Dhaka
Felt
Chittagong
Sri Lanka:
II
Kandy and other parts of Sri Lanka
Maldives:
IV
Male (nearly 2500 km from the epicenter)
Guam:
Felt
by people in a high rise building at Hagatna (more than 5400 km from the epicenter)
Preliminary Determination of Epicenters (PDE), a weekly and monthly publication, National Earthquake Information Center, U.S. Geological Survey, Golden, Colorado, 1971 to present.
1610
Munich Re Group
2005
Annual Review: Natural Catastrophes 2004 in the Munich Re Group Knowledge Series, Topics Geo, 2005, 60 p.
3757
United Nations Environment Programme
2005
After the Tsunami Rapid Environmental Assessment. Retrieved January 11, 2008 from http://www.unep.org/tsunami/reports/TSUNAMI_report_complete.pdf
3968
Cosgrave, John
2007
Synthesis Report: Expanded Summary, Joint evaluation of the international response to the Indian Ocean tsunami, published by the Tsunami Evaluation Coaliton (TEC), January 2007, 42 p.
3969
Telford, John, and John Cosgrave
2006
Synthesis Report: Joint evaluation of the international response to the Indian Ocean tsunami, published by the Tsunami Evaluation Coaliton (TEC), July 2006, 176 p.