I mean really. A timber industry prone to wild price fluctuations (sound familiar?), a civil war that created a refugee crisis so bad that Australia had to intervene militarily ... and now, a tsunami.
The wave doesn't appear to be the monster that devasted the Indian Ocean region back in December 2004, but it's still caused quite a bit of damage to the Solomons. As I write this, officials in Australia don't appear to be too worried but beaches up and down the east coast and in Tasmania have been closed as a precaution.
Keep in mind, the Solomons are in the Pacific region where there's supposed to be a comprehensive earthquake and tsunami warning system. But communications are not the best there -- even with a shaky ceasefire, the islands have no TV and only radio and people were probably just getting up to start their day.
My prayers are with the people across the Pacific Rim tonight that no further damage will be done. As for You Know Who, he'd better not politicize this when he offers aid money tomorrow.
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1 comment:
I was chatting with a Canadian buddy who's now working along the Eastern Aussie coast and he had no idea of any warnings or quake.
I had to tell him on MSN and he then had to leave to alert his friends who had just left to go out surfing or boating or something.
The system needs some revamping, even in the more developed regions!
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