Sri Lanka commemorates the 5th anniversary of deadly tsunami
ColomboPage News Desk.
Sri Lanka today paid tribute to the thousands of people died from the devastating tsunami that hit the island on the Boxing Day of 2004.
The country observed a two-minute silence from 9:25 to 9:27 a.m. today to remember the more than 40,000 people died in the catastrophic tsunami five years ago which also destroyed over 130,000 houses and rendered nearly a million homeless.
Today is also marked as the National Safety Day. A ceremony was held this morning at the Kurunegala Provincial Council Auditorium under the patronage of Prime Minister Rathnasiri Wickramanayaka to mark the day.
Later in the day the Sri Lanka Disaster Management Centre will hold a tsunami preparedness drill at 3.00 p.m. in 10 districts.
Sri Lanka President Mahinda Rajapaksa in a message to mark the National Safety Day said the day is recognized to educate and sensitize the public about disasters, disaster mitigation, prevention, and early warning which will help them respond properly and strongly to disasters such as a tsunami.
The 2004 tsunami caused by a 9.0 magnitude earthquake under the Indian Ocean near the west coast of the Indonesian island of Sumatra affected 13 districts in Sri Lanka on a bright sunny morning taking the beach goers, tourists, fishermen, and residents near the shore without a warning.
Ministry of Disaster Management says all the victimized families have been provided with homes now, 5 years after the disaster. The government has constructed over 130,000 houses with the financial and material support from foreign countries and many non governmental organizations, the Ministry said.
The government says it has provided all necessary facilities to the tsunami hit families to restart their livelihoods. All disaster hit hotels and schools have been reconstructed and functioning at present, the authorities say.
The Ministry recently installed a multi-million dollar early warning system along the country's beaches. The Disaster Management Center (DMC) of Sri Lanka held its first natural disaster drill in July this year. Sri Lanka also took part in the tsunami exercise organized by the UNESCO in October to test the tsunami warning system.
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