Asia's Tsunami Disaster If you've been watching the news, you may have seen pictures of the disaster in parts of Asia. On December 26th 2004, there was a large earthquake under the Indian Ocean, right off the coast of Indonesia. Because of this earthquake, water from the ocean rose up and made huge waves, which are called "tsunamis." Tsunamis are very powerful and can travel long distances. This earthquake was so big that the tsunamis travelled thousands of miles and caused damage in many countries. These big waves struck the coasts of several Asian countries: Indonesia, Sri Lanka, the Maldives, Thailand, India, Malaysia, and Myanmar. Because the waves were so powerful, they even impacted some countries in the Eastern part of Africa, such as Somalia, Kenya and Tanzania. Tsunamis do not happen often. Huge ones like this only happen about once every one hundred years. It is also very unusual for tsunamis to occur in the Indian Ocean, which is where this one occurred. They normally occur in the Pacific Ocean. Countries with coasts on the Pacific Ocean have a system to warn people when there has been an earthquake underwater so that they know to stay away from the ocean. Unfortunately, many of the countries affected by this earthquake in the Indian Ocean do not have that system. Now, some countries are trying to create a system, so if this ever happens again, people can be warned. The countries shown in orange on this map are the countries that were affected by the tsunamis. The middle circle shows the center of the earthquake that caused the tsunamis. The tsunamis destroyed whole villages on the coasts of some countries, such as Indonesia. Many people were killed, or lost their homes and families. The people who survived now have many problems. They may not be able to get food or clean water, or have a place to sleep, and because of this, many people are getting sick. Lots of people in other parts of the world are doing good things to help the victims of the tsunamis in Asia. The most important thing people can do is donate money to help those who are suffering in Asia get food, clean water, clothes, and medicine. Unfortunately, lots of children were also affected by the disaster. Countries, organizations, and individual people around the world are helping these children by sending money. Some countries hit by the tsunamis are trying to match children who lost their parents with other parents who lost their children, and others are looking for ways that people in other countries can adopt children who are now orphans. Though it has been several months since this disaster occurred, there is still a great need for help and support. Many organizations continue to work to rebuild the communities in Asia and help the people their to improve their lives. There are always still things that kids can do to help and to get involved. The links below will guide you to more information on how you can be a part the effort all over the world to help the people who need it. Links for Kids How You Can Help! Kids can do a lot to help the people who lost their homes or families to the tsunamis. UNICEF is an organization that helps children around the world who need money for food, clothes, shelter and medicine. This page from UNICEF has some great ideas for things you can do to raise money for the children hurt by the tsunami, and will also tell you about how UNICEF uses money to help the people who need it. Also visit UNICEF's fundraising page for step-by-step instructions on organizing a fundraising activity to help the children of South Asia. Quarters from Kids Learn fun ways you can raise funds and find out what other kids have been doing! Quarters from Kids is an effort to involve kids around the country, and the adults who work with them, to do what they can to help the tsunami victims. More Ideas from DoSomething.org This page from DoSomething.org has fundraising and other ideas for kids. Find out what you can do and how to do it. Ten-Year-Old Girl Saves 100 People from Tsunami Read about how a girl from England saved 100 people on a beach in Thailand from an oncoming tsunami. USINDO USINDO, or the United States-Indonesia Society, is dedicated to expanding understanding of the relationship between the United States and Indonesia. Get daily updates on the tsunami relief effort in Indonesia. You can also post a condolence message and find about about the Aceh School Project to rebuild schools in the Aceh province, the area most affected by the disaster. Time Magazine for Kids This article about the tsunami explains about the tsunamis in Asia and has some links to organizations involved in the relief effort. News Hour Extra for Students: The Science of the Tsunami Find out how tsunamis occur and what made this one so destructive. News Hour Extra: The Tsunami Relief Effort Learn about the ways governments, organizations, and individual people are helping the tsunami relief effort. More Ways to Help Click on the links below to donate to organizations accepting donations that will go towards helping the children affected by the tsunamis. UNICEF Save the Children NetAid World Vision Plan USA Christian Children's Fund Project Restore: Rebuilding Elementary Schools in Thailand Proyek Sekolah Aceh USINDO Aceh School Project: Rebuilding Schools in Indonesia Peace Corps Partnership Program: Southeast Asia Tsunami Fund International Child Art Foundation: Healing Arts for Tsunami Survivors Links for Parents and Teachers Click on the links below for news articles and press releases describing the effect of the tsunamis on the youth of the countries hit by the disaster, as well as resources to help you teach about tsunamis and talk with kids about disasters. NetAid Resources Visit NetAid's Asia Earthquake Crisis page for educators. You'll find lesson plans about the disaster, along with great ideas for how your class can help raise funds to donate. Materials and Resources from the Asia Society The Asia Society has developed programs and materials on the disaster in Asia. On this page for educators, find relevant teaching materials, professional development opportunities, news and analyses, and a teacher forum where you can discuss ways to teach about the tsunami. Facing History and Ourselves Visit this forum, where educators are sharing students' reaction to the news, student-led efforts to raise funds, debates on how to extend this outpouring of support to help with other crises such as the genocide in Sudan and how to educate about prevention. From the BBC: Tsunami Toll High Among Children From UNICEF: General information on the disaster and UNICEF's efforts to help children affected by it From UNICEF: Overview of the situation in Indonesia From Save the Children: General overview of the disaster and what Save the Children is doing in response From Save the Children: Information by country on the tsunami's impact International Tsunami Information Center: Teaching About Tsunamis