Why were tsunami victims not warned?
Sir: I cannot be the only person who is astonished that no warning of the impending disaster of the Indian Ocean tidal wave was broadcast on the world’s media. The US Geological Survey claimed to have tried to contact relevant governments, but no warning system was in place so nothing happened. This is simply not acceptable. A Richter scale 9 earthquake must cause a huge tidal wave which would hit Indonesia quickly, but it was several hours before it hit India and Sri Lanka and many more hours until it hit Somalia. Surely we need answers from the US Geological Survey and the governments concerned, and from the global media of CNN, Sky and the BBC. A warning to move rapidly away from immediate coastal areas would have saved thousands of lives. The lack of a sophisticated early warning system is only a partial answer. In the meantime the poorest suffer and, while The Independent has excellent coverage of the disaster, too much of the broadcast media seems hooked on the undeniable tragedy
