2008 Woodie Awards
Tsunami in the Asian Pacific leaves thousands homeless; death toll rising
Jewel Anderson
Issue date: 4/20/07 Section: World
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After a recent undersea earthquake and subsequent tsunami in the Asia Pacific, 7,000 people have been made homeless and 52 have died, according to the Associated Press.
On April 2, the tsunami, with waves reportedly up to 50 feet high, battered the Solomon Islands, hitting the island of Gizo hardest.
"It was supposed to be high tide, so when we saw the sea going out we ran up to the high ground," said Gizo resident Jacob Pitisoba to The New York Times. "All the buildings on the coast are gone, washed away by the tsunami. There's nothing left."
Since then, the death toll has been steadily rising.
"We are preparing for a worsening of the known numbers of the dead, of course in a situation like this, many people may just simply disappear," said Greg Hunt, secretary to Australia's Minister of Foreign Affairs to ABC News.
The islands are currently receiving much needed aid. Medical teams from France, Taiwan, Canada, Australia and the Red Cross have been deployed.
The United States, Fiji, Taiwan and Australia are providing financial assistance.
However, in a recent Baltimore Sun op-ed article Michael D. Kerlin calls into question the generosity of the United States.
As of April 10, the United States has contributed $250,000. With 7,000 homeless islanders, this donation is about $35 per person.
Kerlin said, "(This donation is) far from enough for rebuilding or resettlement."
In contrast to the United States' gift of $250,000, Australia and Taiwan have each donated about $1.5 million to Solomon relief efforts.
"It's just insane the amount of money we're misappropriating. There's just over $10 billion that went missing in Iraq, then we're only pledging matters of thousands to these victims," Eric Mortensen, assistant professor of religious studies, said. "I would urge people to be disquieted about the tiny amount of financial aid that the United States is giving."
The undersea earthquake that prompted the tsunami measured a magnitude 8.1, according to the United States Geological Survey.
On April 2, the tsunami, with waves reportedly up to 50 feet high, battered the Solomon Islands, hitting the island of Gizo hardest.
"It was supposed to be high tide, so when we saw the sea going out we ran up to the high ground," said Gizo resident Jacob Pitisoba to The New York Times. "All the buildings on the coast are gone, washed away by the tsunami. There's nothing left."
Since then, the death toll has been steadily rising.
"We are preparing for a worsening of the known numbers of the dead, of course in a situation like this, many people may just simply disappear," said Greg Hunt, secretary to Australia's Minister of Foreign Affairs to ABC News.
The islands are currently receiving much needed aid. Medical teams from France, Taiwan, Canada, Australia and the Red Cross have been deployed.
The United States, Fiji, Taiwan and Australia are providing financial assistance.
However, in a recent Baltimore Sun op-ed article Michael D. Kerlin calls into question the generosity of the United States.
As of April 10, the United States has contributed $250,000. With 7,000 homeless islanders, this donation is about $35 per person.
Kerlin said, "(This donation is) far from enough for rebuilding or resettlement."
In contrast to the United States' gift of $250,000, Australia and Taiwan have each donated about $1.5 million to Solomon relief efforts.
"It's just insane the amount of money we're misappropriating. There's just over $10 billion that went missing in Iraq, then we're only pledging matters of thousands to these victims," Eric Mortensen, assistant professor of religious studies, said. "I would urge people to be disquieted about the tiny amount of financial aid that the United States is giving."
The undersea earthquake that prompted the tsunami measured a magnitude 8.1, according to the United States Geological Survey.
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