Page 38 - Sensors and Control Systems in Manufacturing

The Role of Sensors in the 21st Century

FIGURE 1.2 Indian Ocean Tsunami 3

The Indian Ocean tsunami shook the world. The magnitude 9.3
earthquake that spawned its catastrophic waves was the second most
powerful on record. The waves traveled with such force that, seven
hours after the earthquake, they killed almost 300 people on Somalia’s
coast. However, 15 minutes after the earthquake released its energy
into the ocean, tsunami waves hit Indonesia’s Aceh Province with
unimaginable force.
Survivors describe hearing sounds like a great rumbling thunder
or a loud wind. They talk about seeing the ocean recede and then,
moments later, having an “oily black wave” bearing down on their
villages. For most, the landfall and immediate aftermath are too
horrific to describe.
Although thousands also perished in places like India, Sri Lanka,
and Thailand, Aceh Province was by far the hardest hit by the tsu-
nami: nearly 170,000 of the 230,000 estimated deaths were along the
Acehnese coast, in tiny fishing villages and sprawling cities. At least
500,000 were instantly homeless. Unfortunately, Aceh was ill-equipped
to deal with such devastation. If only simple adequate sensors had
been in place, such a disproportional disaster could have been
avoided or its devastation reduced.
For more than a decade, Aceh had suffered from the constant vio-
lence of a civil war. The province was essentially shut off from the rest
of Indonesia and, as a result, the rest of the world. There was a sense
of isolation and distrust even among neighboring villages.
The tsunami changed everything, immediately. In some sense,
the slate was wiped clean; the past mattered little. Help was needed
from any available source, whether former foe or friend.