Pray for the dead, but help the living

Yesterday's massive earthquake and tsunami has devastated portions of South Asia. Making this story even more heartbreaking is the plight of the poorest people in Malaysia, India, Sri Lanka, The Maldives, Thailand, Bangladesh and Indonesia. The massive tidal wave hit the beaches at 8 AM at more than 300 mph and measured as much as 30 feet high. Many tourists were still in there hotels, but fishermen, poorest of the poor, were already on the water. These men ply the waters of the Indian Ocean to squeak out a subsidence living for their families who often live further inland. This storm has taken thousands of breadwinners from their wives and their children who must now try to build back their lives without husbands, fathers, or even the tiny boats on which they depended. U.S. Dollars and Euros go a very long way in these impoverished regions and I am asking you to please help. The tablets needed to make one gallon of water drinkable cost 19 cents. Even if it is only 5 or 10 or 20, to turn our backs on these people would be to turn our backs on our shared humanity. - F2S

International Committee of the Red Cross

Donate Now

*************************************************************

There have been a number of devastating earthquakes in the last 100 years. Here is a list of the most notable earthquakes of the 20th Century (CBC News In Depth):

Date.......................Location...............Magnitude..............Deaths
April 18, 1906......San Francisco..........8.3........................503
Aug. 16, 1906.......Chile.........................8.6....................20,000
Dec. 16, 1920.......China........................8.6...................100,000
Sept. 1, 1920........Japan........................8.3..................100,000
May 22, 1927.......China........................8.3...................200,000
March 2, 1933......Japan........................8.9......................2,990
Jan. 15, 1934........India........................8.4.....................10,700
Jan. 24, 1939........Chile........................8.3.....................28,000
May 21-30, 1960..Chile........................9.5......................5,000
April 10, 1972........Iran.........................7.1.......................5,350
July 28, 1976.........China..................7.8 to 8.2...............242,000
Sept. 16, 1978........Iran....................7.5 to 7.9.................15,000
Sept. 19, 1985.......Mexico.....................8.1.......................9,500
June 21, 1990.......Iran..........................7.7.......................35,000