An undersea earthquake in the Indian Ocean on 26th December 2004 produced a tsunami that caused one of the biggest natural disasters in modern history. Over 200,000 people are known to have lost their lives. The 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami was among the deadliest natural disasters in human history with over 230,000 people killed in 14 countries bordering the Indian Ocean.
The smashing force of a wall of water travelling at high speed, and the destructive power of a large volume of water draining off the land and carrying all with it, even if the wave did not look large.
The epicentre of the earthquake was located about 250 km south-southeast of the Indonesian city of Banda Aceh. It was a rare mega thrust earthquake and occurred on the interface of the India and Burma tectonic plates. This was caused by the release of stresses that develop as the India plate subducts beneath the overriding Burma plate. A mega thrust earthquake is where one tectonic plate slips beneath another, causing vertical motion of the plates. This large vertical displacement of the sea-floor generated the devastating tsunami, which caused damage over such a large area around the Indian Ocean.
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