Posted on 12/28/2004 8:37:33 AM PST by Mike Fieschko
At dawn, the most destructive earthquake in recorded European history strikes the Straits of Messina in southern Italy, leveling the cities of Messina in Sicily and Reggio di Calabria on the Italian mainland. The earthquake and tsunami it caused killed an estimated 100,000 people.
Sicily and Calabria are known as la terra ballerina--"the dancing land"--for the periodic seismic activity that strikes the region. In 1693, 60,000 people were killed in southern Sicily by an earthquake, and in 1783 most of the Tyrrenian coast of Calabria was razed by a massive earthquake that killed 50,000. The quake of 1908 was particularly costly in terms of human life because it struck at 5:20 a.m. without warning, catching most people at home in bed rather than in the relative safety of the streets or fields.
The main shock, registering an estimated 7.5 magnitude on the Richter scale, caused a devastating tsunami with 40-foot waves that washed over coastal towns and cities. The two major cities on either side of the Messina Straits--Messina and Reggio di Calabria--had some 90 percent of their buildings destroyed. Telegraph lines were cut and railway lines were damaged, hampering relief efforts. To make matters worse, the major quake on the 28th was followed by hundreds of smaller tremors over subsequent days, bringing down many of the remaining buildings and injuring or killing rescuers. On December 30, King Victor Emmanuel III arrived aboard the battleship Napoli to inspect the devastation.
Meanwhile, a steady rain fell on the ruined cities, forcing the dazed and injured survivors, clad only in their nightclothes, to take shelter in caves, grottoes, and impromptu shacks built out of materials salvaged from the collapsed buildings. Veteran sailors could barely recognize the shoreline because long stretches of the coast had sunk several feet into the Messina Strait.
U.N. official slams U.S. as 'stingy' over aid
By Bill Sammon
THE WASHINGTON TIMES
The Bush administration yesterday pledged $15 million to Asian nations hit by a tsunami that has killed more than 22,500 people, although the United Nations' humanitarian-aid chief called the donation "stingy."
"The United States, at the president's direction, will be a leading partner in one of the most significant relief, rescue and recovery challenges that the world has ever known," said White House deputy press secretary Trent Duffy.
But U.N. Undersecretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Jan Egeland suggested that the United States and other Western nations were being "stingy" with relief funds, saying there would be more available if taxes were raised.
Geeez. don't bring this up. The UN will say that we still owe aid for that one.
Considering that many Moo-slimes were caught in the tsunamis, I'd say that was enough aid.
This one will probably end up having a higher death toll IMHO.
Yes, most probably. The rescue teams will discover other bodies in the ruins of the towns and in remote villages. As for those who were at sea when it happened, they still must be counted as "missing".
What a horrible disaster.
Stingy??? I enjoyed how the United States was mentioned specifically. Why not mention the other "Western nations" by name?
Actually, those at sea are the truly lucky ones. The wave is quite modest in the open ocean and as lethal as a roller coaster ride.
Really ? Wow, I thought you were washed ashore (or in these case splattered ashore) by the strength of the tide.
"Considering that many Moo-slimes were caught in the tsunamis, I'd say that was enough aid."
Muslim victims are innocents - not radical militants and terrorists. About 1/3 are children. What I wonder about is the world watchdog reports that Thailand is a tourist center for providing child prostitutes.
I have to check my facts on this. Many reports about international child sex-slave trades have been forwarded to the, er um, the UN. The near eastern countries in the regions of Thailand and Indonisia are the center of it.
Grrr...
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