The Indian Ocean tsunami struck several countries of southeast Asia, including Thailand (especially Ao Nang in Thailand) on December 26, 2004. The earthquake that caused the tsunami had a magnitude of 9.3 on the Richter scale. The death toll is estimated to be approximately 230, 000 people. Of this number, about 168, 000 died in Indonesia alone. It is the deadliest tsunami in the recorded history of natural disasters.
In Thailand, the death toll was confirmed to be 5, 395 and estimated to be about 8, 212, and 8, 457 people were reported to be injured, 2, 817 people were found to be missing and about 7, 000 were displaced. The epicenter of the earthquake was in Banda Aceh, Indonesia, but the effects quickly spread across to other countries such as Thailand and Malaysia, which are located in the immediate vicinity of the earthquake. It further moved to the Indian subcontinent, where it caused major devastation in the coastal villages in southeastern Indian state of Tamil Nadu, the southern states of Kerala and Andhra Pradesh and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, an island group in the Bay of Bengal, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Maldives and some eastern African countries such as Kenya, Tanzania and Somalia.
In Thailand, the death toll was confirmed to be 5, 395 and estimated to be about 8, 212, and 8, 457 people were reported to be injured, 2, 817 people were found to be missing and about 7, 000 were displaced. The epicenter of the earthquake was in Banda Aceh, Indonesia, but the effects quickly spread across to other countries such as Thailand and Malaysia, which are located in the immediate vicinity of the earthquake. It further moved to the Indian subcontinent, where it caused major devastation in the coastal villages in southeastern Indian state of Tamil Nadu, the southern states of Kerala and Andhra Pradesh and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, an island group in the Bay of Bengal, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Maldives and some eastern African countries such as Kenya, Tanzania and Somalia.