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Indonesia was hit the worst. The huge waves also destroyed coastal areas in Thailand, Sri Lanka, India, Burma, the Maldives and Malaysia. Several hours later, the waves hit the East African countries of Somalia, Kenya and Tanzania. The tsunami was truly an international disaster with victims from all over the world. At least two thousand of those killed were holiday travelers from Europe and North America.
And I'm Faith Lapidus. Join us again next week for Explorations in VOA Special English.
American President Bill Clinton was appointed a U.N. representative for recovery efforts. Mister Clinton said it will take time for governments to provide the money they have offered. This is because governments and aid donors can provide help only after they receive a country's rebuilding plan.
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Phuket also had a strong travel industry before the tsunami. Since December, however, much of the local economy has been destroyed. Kitti Patanachinda is the vice president of the local tourism association in Phuket. He said hotels are less than thirty percent full. Eating places are empty, and more than forty percent of local businesses have dismissed workers.
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Paul Whitmore is a scientist at the Tsunami Warning Center in the American state of Alaska. That center provides information to the Hawaii headquarters. Mister Whitmore said the Pacific center can send out tsunami warnings within ten minutes of an underwater earthquake. Such a warning last December would have saved thousands of lives.
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Recently, the Voice of America marked the sixth month anniversary of the deadly tsunami with a series of stories. Reporters examined rebuilding efforts by affected nations. VOA also examined the humanitarian assistance and financial aid that was promised victims. Today, it remains unclear how much of that aid money will be given for long-term rebuilding or how much of it will reach those who need it most.
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And I'm Faith Lapidus with Explorations in VOA Special English. More than six months ago, huge tsunami waves struck twelve nations in the Indian Ocean. We report on efforts by some affected nations to rebuild.
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A political crisis in Somalia has limited recovery as well. The country has been without a central government since leader Siad Barre was ousted in nineteen ninety-one. Armed groups loyal to local leaders have been fighting for control over parts of the country.
By Jill Moss
2005-7-19
Part of the aid promised after the December tsunami will be used to build disaster-warning systems in the Indian Ocean and the South China Sea. Several countries have agreed to work together to establish the system. It will likely be modeled after an international tsunami warning system for the Pacific Ocean. That system has its headquarters in the American state of Hawaii.
Kuntoro Mangkusubroto leads the Indonesian government's tsunami relief agency. He told VOA reporter Nancy-Amelia Collins that the government does not want permanent housing built until the needs of all villagers are considered. He said this takes time because so many people are involved.
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Roberta Cohen is an expert on aid financing at the Brookings Institution in Washington, D.C. She told VOA reporter Mike Bowman that donor groups want to guarantee that communities can grow over time and that no money is wasted. Miz Cohen said that many affected nations, including Indonesia and Sri Lanka, did not have official rebuilding plans until May.
Maulid Warfa works for the World Food Program in Somalia. He told VOA reporter Cathy Majtenyi that recovery efforts are much slower there compared to other areas because of the lack of an effective government. He said the U.N. food agency cannot feed Somalia's tsunami victims forever. He said the government will have to help the people get back to work so they can feed themselves.
Daily life for many tsunami victims remains difficult for several reasons. One major problem is a lack of jobs. In Phuket, southern Thailand, for example, workers are trying to fix local fishing boats. Yet, many boats are still in need of repair. VOA reporter Scott Bobb spoke to villagers in Nam Khem. They said the Thai government and donor groups have provided loans to help get the fishing industry operating again. But many fishermen say they have seen very little money. And without boats, there is no work.
To mark the six-month anniversary of the tsunami, officials from the United Nations and the European Union met to discuss progress in the aid effort. Jan Egeland is the top U-N official for emergency aid. He estimates it will take five to ten years to rebuild all that was lost in the tsunami. But for many victims, recovery could take a lifetime.
Politics also has slowed relief efforts. In Sri Lanka, some minority parties have withdrawn support for the government of President Chandrika Kumaratunga. This is because she was working toward an agreement with Tamil rebels on sharing tsunami recovery aid.
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In the early morning hours of December twenty-sixth, two thousand four, a huge earthquake near the Indonesian island of Sumatra tore apart the sea floor. This created a series of huge ocean waves, called a tsunami. It crashed into coasts across the Indian Ocean without warning. One hundred seventy-six thousand people were killed, most of them in Indonesia. About fifty thousand people are still missing and believed dead.
This program was written by Jill Moss. It was produced by Mario Ritter. I'm Steve Ember.
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