Tsunami aftermath

The first comprehensive study of the damage caused by the tsunami in Indonesia reveals a devastated society and a staggering number [of] children killed and orphaned. [.....]

The biggest story of the disaster, says the report [by the World Bank and Indonesian government], is not the damage to the national economy, which was substantial, but the suffering of hundreds of thousands of individuals who have lost everything: members of their families, their homes, and any hope of making a living.

In some places the whole structure of society has changed. In Alu Naga village it was reported that all the children had died. Drawn to flapping fish on the beach as the sea receded, many were killed as the wave followed. It was a lost generation for the foreseeable future.

The report - which uses the total death figure on January 14 of 110,229 - estimates that 37% of the casualties were under 18. Up to 12,160 of those who died, about 13%, were infants. As many as 7,722 children lost both parents and 32,735 lost one parent.