SINGAPORE : A tsunami warning system in the Indian Ocean could have saved thousands of lives after the Sumatra earthquake.Here is an idea for progressives and "pro-life" majority in this country. Maybe the United States could take a small chunk out of its military budget, the amount being spent in Iraq for the war, and the paying of no-bid contracts for Dick Cheney's retirement and instead help these affected nations to develop a reliable early warning system. I'm not too familiar with the history of natural disasters, but I would think this is easily one of the most deadly ever. Its true that tsunamis like this are very rare, but we have the technology to help save some lives in these occurrences, and there is no excuse now for other nations to lack this type of system.
But the system does not exist currently, because tsunamis are a rare occurrence in the region.
The death toll for this catastrophe has now risen to over 24,000. And if the current trend continues, this number is old news. It seems that everytime I've heard or seen a report that gives a number, I'm immediately able to find another report with a larger number. But I'm not going to look for more such reports anymore... its far too depressing.
Update: Tsunami Death Toll Climbs to 52,000 & WHO: Disease Could Double Asia Death Toll
