2004 Indian Ocean Earthquake and Tsunami
- Date
- 26 December 2004
- Category
- Environment & climate
- Region
- South and Southeast Asia (Indian Ocean rim)
- Era
- Contemporary
- Significance
On 26 December 2004 a magnitude 9.1-9.3 megathrust earthquake ruptured the seafloor off the west coast of northern Sumatra, Indonesia, where the India Plate subducts beneath the Burma Plate.
It was the third-most-powerful earthquake ever recorded and produced the longest fault rupture and faulting duration observed by modern seismology, causing the entire planet to vibrate. The sudden vertical displacement of the seabed generated a series of devastating tsunamis whose waves reached heights of up to 30 metres, striking the coastlines of fourteen countries around the Indian Ocean with little or no warning. An estimated 227,000-228,000 people were killed, with Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India, Thailand, and the Maldives suffering the heaviest losses, making it the deadliest tsunami in recorded history and the deadliest natural disaster of the 21st century. The catastrophe triggered one of the largest humanitarian relief efforts ever mounted and led directly to the establishment of the Indian Ocean Tsunami Warning System in 2006.
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Related environment & climate events
- Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer16 September 1987
- The Chernobyl Nuclear Disaster1986
- Bhopal Gas DisasterDecember 2-3, 1984
- The Rio Earth Summit3-14 June 1992
- 2024 confirmed as first year above 1.5 °C10 January 2025
- Renewables overtake coal as world's top electricity source2025 (confirmed 18 December 2025)
Further reading
The wider story
A New Green History of the World
The classic accessible account of how environment and climate have shaped human history.
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