Panic before the storm (a terribly sad series of three pictures taken as the tsunami approaches)

Sydney Morning Herald ^ | 12/30/04

[dead]

Tourists run for their lives as the first of six tsunamis starts to roll towards Hat Rai
Lay Beach, near Krabi in southern Thailand. One woman runs towards the waves.
Photo: AFP

The woman continues to run as the wave advances.
Photo: AFP

With the waves engulfing boats, the woman makes contact with her group. It is not known if they survived.
Photo: AFP

[RobRoy]

I think he meant he could relate to MY experience.

I'm with you 100% on the rest of your post. Did you see the pictures of the normal coast and the pictures of the coast during the original receeding of the water. Notice the currents? I certainly would not want to be in that unless I was VERY buoyant. Then I'd still run the risk of hitting something. And then there is the initial impact.

[Principle Over Politics]

From where they were in relation to the beach, it would have been impossible to swim out to deeper water, as you suggested in your post to dead..

To: dead

"She was running towards what looks like her husband and four kids. I would imagine the five of them are all gone. It’s just so sad."

Both the woman and her family did exactly the wrong thing. She should have run away to higher ground and her family would have been better off swimming out deeper and diving just before the wave hit letting it pass over their heads.

I expect you are right. They are dead.

151 posted on 12/30/2004 11:27:10 AM CST by monday
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Now you say you were talking of someone out scuba diving in deep water.

[NittanyLion]

The only moving water in the initial wave, or in any wave, is that which is at the breaking edge. Once you surface after the breaking edge has passed, the wave will likely move you many yards towards the beach but it will not be as rushing currents. Instead the whole ocean will move toward the beach. It will seem very calm.

I'm afraid I just can't agree. After the leading edge water will continue to move at 30MPH when you encounter a tsunami. I don't know of anyone who can swim against or navigate in a 30MPH current, and I know world class swimmers.

[Baraonda]

Right you are.

I agree.

[monday]

"Hmmm ... it must be nice for you to think you would not be helpless in that situation"

I think you mean that sarcastically, but yes, it is nice. Just because you would be helpless doesn't mean everyone would. Certainly anyone caught in shallow water or far from higher ground on the beach would be helpless, but those far enough out, in deep water, could easily survive with the knowledge to do so. Many in fact did survive.

Most people would die if dropped into a set of waves in Pipeline Hawaii. There are, however, people with the knowledge required to not only survive, but to surf the waves of Pipeline.

[Malleus Dei]

"After the leading edge water will continue to move at 30MPH"

Well, maybe not exactly 30MPH, but it will continue to move.

[monday]

"From where they were in relation to the beach, it would have been impossible to swim out to deeper water, as you suggested in your post to dead.."

All it takes to dive under a wave is to get a few feet under the breaking edge. By running inland into shallower water they were making it more difficult to do that. Shallow water makes it impossible to either run to higher ground or dive under a wave. The worst possible place to be.

They might have been killed anyway though. Hard to say how far deep water or high ground was. They might have been too far anyway.

[patent]

>>>>Both the woman and her family did exactly the wrong thing. She should have run away to higher ground and her family would have been better off swimming out deeper and diving just before the wave hit letting it pass over their heads.

There is no way the family could have gotten out to deep enough water in time. No offense, but that's nonsense. Even at 20-30 mph, that wave would have overtaken them far before they got deep enough, and then it would have done exactly the same thing it did with them standing there, it would have driven them forward.

I don't have any idea where the woman could have made it to, as I don't know what's behind her, and whether there was high enough ground. Neither do you.

patent

[VadeRetro]

If you had on a life jacket you would likely have survived the tsunami if you didn't get caught under something.

Neither the in-rush nor the out-rush gives you much chance to bob up buoyantly. In the former case, water is piling up over you, pushing you down and forward, scraping you along the bottom. In the latter case, it's the undertow from Hell and you're probably dead by then anyway.

[spiffy]

They move at 500 MPH over the open ocean, as they approach shallow water they slow down considerably, and as a result they get much higher.

Hey - That's conservation of energy, right? All of that kinetic energy (speed) changing into potential energy (height).

[monday]

"After the leading edge water will continue to move at 30MPH when you encounter a tsunami. I don't know of anyone who can swim against or navigate in a 30MPH current"

Why would you want to? All the water, with you in it, is surging toward land. As it hits land it slows and then begins to reverse. You are fine. There are no currents or dangerous objects thrashing about in the water yet.

The danger comes when the water rebounds from land. Then you will have to deal with rip currents and floating debris.

Obviously this won't work unless you are in deep water several hundred yards from shore. This is usually where I am when at the beach so perhaps I am looking at this from a different prospective from most of you.

[jayef]

Resignation.

[monday]

"Neither do you"

don't get mad. Read #227

[chudogg]

I know somewhere theres gotta be a picture of somebody trying to surf it! Lets find that picture.

[redheadtoo]

That's just hills in the background.

That "hill" is moving toward the shore. Notice how it is closer to the white boat in the second picture. That big blue thing in the background is the Tsunami wave heading toward landfall.

[monday]

"I know somewhere theres gotta be a picture of somebody trying to surf it!"

looks unrideable to me. Completely closed out. It would be like trying to ride a eighty ton bull on speed.

[NittanyLion]

Obviously this won't work unless you are in deep water several hundred yards from shore. This is usually where I am when at the beach so perhaps I am looking at this from a different prospective from most of you.

I'm with you now - yes I was thinking of it from the perspective of these folks who were at the shoreline.

[monday]

"That "hill" is moving toward the shore. Notice how it is closer to the white boat in the second picture. "

It just looks that way because the photographer is zooming in on the woman running out. It is just hills off to the right in the background.

[jayef]

No. That is not the tsunami. Point blank, end of story . . . it just isn't. They dynamics are all wrong. The white foamy things are the tsunami.

[patent]

>>>don't get mad. Read #227

With your know it all attitude and criticism of dead people, its hard not too.

You are slamming a woman who likely gave her life trying to warn her family as doing “exactly the wrong thing.” You probably think you mean well, but it sure doesn't come out that way. You are also slamming the family, who didn’t have a clue what was coming until it was too late and criticizing their lack of "knowledge" and "quick thinking."

Their dead, you’re a know it all, and if you don’t think that’s going to annoy people, you aren’t very good at being a know it all.

Not to mention which, I’d suggest to you they need a bit more than a “few feet” under the breaking edge of the water. Many who were deeper than that were thrown.

patent