Tsunamis Can Change Geography

Sunday's devastating and tragic 9.0 earthquake created the Indian Ocean's first wave of its kind in more than a century, and it moved the entire island of Sumatra 100 feet.

1 minute read

December 27, 2004, 5:00 AM PST

By Chris Steins @planetizen

"The massive tsunami waves, not ground shaking, caused most of the damage and more than 13,000 deaths.

The magnitude 9.0 earthquake that struck off Indonesia on Sunday morning moved the entire island of Sumatra about 100 feet to the southwest, pushing up a gigantic mass of water that collapsed into a tsunami and devastated shorelines around the Indian Ocean and the South China Sea."

CNN and The New York Times have full coverage.

Thanks to Laura Kranz

FULL STORY: A Rare Tsunami, and a Change in Geography

Sunday, December 26, 2004 in The Los Angeles Times

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