1.

Record Nr.

UNINA9910765885203321

Autore

Øyhus Arne Olav <1950->

Titolo

Recovering from a disaster : a study of the relief and reconstruction process in Sri Lanka after the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami

Pubbl/distr/stampa

Oslo, : Cappelen Damm akademisk, 2017

ISBN

9788202568351

Descrizione fisica

1 online resource (168 pages) : illustrations, maps; digital, PDF file(s)

Disciplina

363.3494095493

Soggetti

Indian Ocean Tsunami, 2004

Tsunamis - Sri Lanka

Tsunamis - South Asia

Tsunami damage - Sri Lanka

Disaster relief - Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka History 1972-

Lingua di pubblicazione

Inglese

Formato

Materiale a stampa

Livello bibliografico

Monografia

Nota di bibliografia

Includes bibliographical references.

Nota di contenuto

Part I. The tsunami: what happened and why? --chapter 1. Introduction --chapter 2. The Indian Ocean tsunami and its direct aftermath --chapter 3. Interpreting the natural disasters and their impacts: some theoretical considerations --part II. Hambantota case studies --chapter 4. Introducing the case studies --chapter 5. The disaster - an act of God? --chapter 6. The golden wave? --chapter 7. Bonds or bridges? --chapter 8. Back to business? --part III. Lessons learnt and what's next --chapter 9. Comparing findings --chapter 10. The next chapter.

Sommario/riassunto

On 26 December 2004 at 6.58 hours, a massive earthquake with its epicentre outside the coast of Sumatra generated a series of gigantic waves, tsunamis. At 8.35 hours the waves reached the eastern and southern coastline of Sri Lanka, crushing hundreds of villages and towns, killing and maiming tens of thousands of people within seconds. When the waves pulled back, and the ocean calmed down, local people came running to the scene to help.In the first couple of days after the disaster the survivors and their helpers had to manage largely on their own. When the professional experts arrived, most of them without any prior knowledge about the country, they took full command over the



situation, brushing aside the local communities and their indigenous emergency systems. At this stage, those who were meant to die had already succumbed, and most of the wounded had received assistance from friends and neighbours.Today, more than ten years after, those parts of Sri Lanka that were damaged by the disaster are for the greater part reconstructed, some places even to a more advanced level than before. This has, however, not been a smooth and pain free process. This book is about what happened in the southern district of Hambantota during the disaster, and in the relief, rehabilitation and reconstruction process after the Indian Ocean Tsunami.