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CNN Live At Daybreak

Scope of Tsunami Disaster Grows Larger Day by Day

Aired December 29, 2004 - 05:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Straight ahead on DAYBREAK, a frightening firsthand glimpse of this weekend's tsunami disaster. The floodwaters have now gone down, but the bodies, they just keep finding more. Also, a troubling question -- could many of these deaths have been prevented? We'll look for answers this morning. And disease -- it could prove just as deadly as the tsunamis.
It is Wednesday, December 29.

This is DAYBREAK.

And good morning to you.

From the Time Warner Center in New York, I'm Carol Costello, along with Chad Myers.

Now in the news, disturbing pictures into CNN this morning. Rows of bodies filled the streets of an Indonesia province, just a fraction of the deaths from the earthquake and tsunamis in South Asia. Oh, the death count has now topped 66,000 people. We expect to hear from President Bush today about U.S. relief efforts in the wake of this disaster. Earlier, a unofficial suggested rich nations have been stingy with aid. The U.S. has now pledged $35 million.

In Baghdad, a powerful explosion kills more than 20 people. Police say insurgents lured them into a house and then set off explosives. Police officers are among the dead, but it is not clear how many.

And the revolving door at the CIA keeps spinning. This time the deputy director for intelligence is leaving. The "New York Times" says Jami Miscik was forced out by the agency's new director, Porter Goss.

To the forecast center and Chad -- good morning.

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Good morning, Carol.

I want to flip you around the world this morning. We have some time early this 5:00 hour, or 4:00 hour Central or wherever you're living. I kind of want to give you an idea of what the folks over here actually have to deal with today, from Sri Lanka all the way back even into Thailand.

Many of the areas here get very warm weather in the afternoons here, 90 in Rangoon, 82 down in Minna and even back over here a little bit farther, Columbo at 80, with an afternoon shower. Still no picnic here as those folks try to clean up, obviously, what they have, the rescue going on here.

(WEATHER REPORT)

COSTELLO: The scope of the tsunami disaster grows larger day by day. Here is the latest for you. More than 66,000 dead. We just got that number in seconds ago, that death toll, it's expected to go much higher, though. Hundreds of thousands of people still homeless this morning. There are fears deadly diseases could break out among them. It was a magnitude 9.0 earthquake that triggered the huge killer waves. It is the most powerful quake to hit the planet in 40 years. And you're watching new video we got in overnight of more vacationers taking home video and trying to escape the wall of water that came upon them.

As I said, the death count has been steadily rising in Asia, especially in Sri Lanka, in the wake of those waves. One of the hardest hit areas is outside of Galle on the southwest corner of the island nation.

CNN's Satinder Bindra joins us from there with the latest.

SATINDER BINDRA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Carol, there's an awful lot of destruction here all along Sri Lanka's coast. Homes are destroyed. Offices are destroyed and even municipal offices here, almost all the infrastructure here has gone. But slowly, relief efforts are getting underway and international relief, too, is arriving here in this part of southern Sri Lanka.

But one very, very major concern, there's hundreds of rotting corpses everywhere and as the temperature rises here, there's a greater risk of disease. These corpses carry viruses. They carry bacteria. So health officials are extremely concerned.

Another problem here, with so much destruction, there is the problem of looting and some people are getting very, very angry. Tempers are running hot.

COSTELLO: Satinder, I wanted to ask you a question. I was just like lost in these horrible pictures that you're sending to us from Sri Lanka. I wanted to ask you about the bodies. I know they're burying them in mass graves, which means they're burying them quickly to try to avoid disease. But family members don't have time to get to them.

Is there anything being done to help these families figure out if their loved ones have died or where they are?

BINDRA: Well, everything is being done to help. But the scale of this tragedy is so intense, in some cases, entire families have been wiped out so there's no one to recover bodies. I was at a hospital recently, Carol, where in the past two days 800 bodies had been brought there. Out of these, 300 remained unidentified. So hospital staff had no choice but to organization mass burials.

Now, they're under orders from authorities to do this quickly because the number one fear here remains disease.

I should also add that drinking water supplies are very, very important. But slowly and gradually we are noticing water supplies are getting to this area. There's bottled water available now in some parts of southern Sri Lanka and also trucks are carrying large plastic containers, large black plastic containers, and people are slowly getting access to better drinking water -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Satinder Bindra reporting live from Sri Lanka this morning.

The disaster has left thousands of people missing, as you heard, and it's left family and friends desperate to find them. On a hard hit resort island in Thailand, people are crowding around a bulletin board showing photos of the missing. You see it there. Stunned tourists have been holding up signs with the names of missing friends or relatives. It just so reminds you of the aftermath of September 11, doesn't it?

Let's go back now to the testifying moments when that tsunami hit.

Survivors provide the most chilling accounts, both with their videotapes and their haunted memories. Take a look at this amazing survivor tape.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's coming in. It's coming again.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's coming again?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. It's coming again.

(CROSSTALK)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's coming again, your way. It's coming again.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: This video from tsunami survivor Frederic Bornesand, a Swedish police officer vacationing in Thailand with his girlfriend. Here he tells CNN just what happened in this look beyond the sound bite.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

FREDERIC BORNESAND, TSUNAMI SURVIVOR: We saw a lot of water coming in and after the first wave, I don't think anyone thought that it could come with more water. So after the first wave, I just went down to see if I could help someone. And while trying to do that, the second wave was coming.

When the first wave came, I went up and after the first wave I got back down again and the second wave was much, much larger than the first one. So when the second wave came, I was forced toward the windows and to the lobby and when I came back again, there was so much to do to help the old man and to clear the way to get him up one or two floors. It was hard work.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Bornesand says the elderly man there was accompanied by an elderly woman whose fate, well, he just doesn't know what happened to them this morning.

Cnn.com is posting appeals for missing loved ones. If you're seeking news of friends and relatives in areas affected by the killer waves, you can send your e-mails to tsunami@cnn.com. That's tsunami@cnn.com.

Experts believe thousands of lives could have been saved by a tsunami warning system. But no such system exists in the Indian Ocean. But a version is in place in the Pacific and scientists say it's just a matter of time until it'll be put to good use.

CNN's Frank Buckley has more for you.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

FRANK BUCKLEY, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The devastation in Southern Asia came without warning, as it did in 1946 in Hawaii, when more than 150 people died from a tsunami; as it did in 1964, after an earthquake in Alaska created tsunamis, killing at least 130 people. Both events prompted the creation of tsunami warning centers, this one in Hawaii and another in Alaska. Scientists at the center say a tsunami will again someday hit the Western U.S. CHARLES MCCREERY, DIRECTOR, PACIFIC TSUNAMI WARNING CENTER: We don't know whether it's going to come tomorrow or whether it could be another 10 or 20 years before the next one. But it will come.

BUCKLEY: Experts say coastal residents in the Western U.S. are at risk, a million in California alone. But in the hours it would take a large tsunami to cross the Pacific Ocean, deep ocean sensors and other instruments would provide enough information to the warning centers to allow scientists to predict where and when water would come ashore, so that emergency management officials could warn local residents of impending danger.

JEFF LADOUCE, CHAIRMAN, INTERNATIONAL TSUNAMI INFORMATION CENTER: Although there will be casualties, I don't believe the casualties will be anywhere near as extensive as what they are. Obviously, the goal is no casualties.

BUCKLEY: Jeff LaDouce of the National Weather Service heads an effort to reduce the potentially devastating effects of tsunamis. He works with state emergency management officials like George Crawford of Washington State, who has developed evacuation routes and other plans based on projections like this one, illustrating a potential event in Seattle, Washington, of where a tsunami would go.

GEORGE CRAWFORD, MANAGER, WASHINGTON EARTHQUAKE PROGRAM: Where do I see potential traffic problems? Where's the best place to do mass care?

BUCKLEY (on camera): But emergency management officials say coastal residents should also listen to the warnings from the earth itself. They say people along a coastline who experience an earthquake strong enough that it makes it difficult to stand should immediately move to higher ground.

(voice-over): Quakes like those might generate local tsunamis that could come ashore within minutes of a temblor, which is why LaDouce and others say coastal residents should always be prepared to evacuate immediately after a quake.

LADOUCE: We probably will not be able to save everyone, but we will save people's lives based on the work that we've done.

BUCKLEY: Because a tsunami could happen here and will happen again.

Frank Buckley, CNN, Los Angeles.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: They survived the horrific walls of water, but can they endure the threats ahead? At 19 minutes past, how the focus in Indonesia is shifting from the dead to the living.

Relief workers haven't been able to get to remote areas in Thailand until now. The country's resort islands were packed with tourists. We'll have more on that at 34 minutes past.

And enough bodies to fill 19 football fields. At 52 minutes after, why health officials fear that number could double.

Right now, though, a look at what else is making news this Wednesday morning.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(STOCK MARKET REPORT)

COSTELLO: Your news, money, weather and sports.

It's 5:15 Eastern.

Here's what's all new this morning.

The death toll across Asia continues to rise. More than 66,000 people are now dead from those tsunamis. Tens of thousands more are still missing. Officials say disease could kill as many people as the tsunamis have.

In Baghdad, at least 20 people died after Iraqi police were lured into a house loaded with explosives. As police entered, the bombs went off.

In money news, another avenue for disaster relief has opened up online. Amazon.com is giving customers a chance to donate to the tsunami relief efforts on their Web page. So far, it's collected more than $950,000, and it did that in a very short period of time.

In culture, it's been a pretty good year on Broadway. Boosted by Billy Crystal's one man show, "700 Sundays," ticket sales are up. Broadway productions grossed nearly $750 million. More than 11 million people attended shows on the Great White Way.

In sports, the Suns' streak has set. The San Antonio Spurs downed the Phoenix Suns 115-94, to end their 11 game winning streak. But the Suns still have the best record in the NBA.

To the forecast center and Chad.

MYERS: Carol, did you see Oregon State bet Notre Dame last night in football?

COSTELLO: No, I did not.

MYERS: It was the late game. I think it was still on when I got here. Holy cow, those guys were playing late.

Good morning, everybody.

(WEATHER REPORT)

COSTELLO: Actually, stick around, Chad, because I want you to help me out with these satellite images that we're going to show our viewers.

MYERS: Oh, is this the Earth Viewer?

COSTELLO: This is the coast...

MYERS: Yes, go ahead.

COSTELLO: Yes. This is the Earth Viewer and this was taken along the coast of Sri Lanka before the earthquake occurred.

MYERS: Yes. This is from Digital Globe. This is a, what, this is back about in June or July they took this picture, right? I think we can get a lot closer to this at some point in time, too, but this is what the shoreline looked like. You can see, obviously, the beach there and all the homes and everything a block or two inland. Now...

COSTELLO: And then the next satellite image we're going to see was taken four hours after the earthquake struck.

So what are we seeing, Chad?

MYERS: Well, I don't know. I've seen better pictures than this one, where it's zoomed in much closer. You can see, obviously, the torrents of water back out to the west as that water is being still sucked back around there. An awful lot of a dirtier ocean. Obviously, a lot of that dirt came in from what was on land. And, you know, maybe we can get that better picture a little bit later. You could actually see the destruction one or two blocks all the way in where those buildings really weren't where they were supposed to be and obviously weren't where they were before.

COSTELLO: Well, you can see...

MYERS: But there's very...

COSTELLO: You can see that giant wall of water, though.

MYERS: Very little of the coastline left. Very little of the sand at all exposed. It was completely washed back out to sea.

COSTELLO: You know what's really strange, Chad, and we're going to show more on this story a little later on DAYBREAK, some people were scuba diving.

MYERS: Yes?

COSTELLO: They were under the water.

MYERS: Right.

COSTELLO: This thing hit, they came up, had no idea what had occurred.

MYERS: Right.

COSTELLO: They could not feel it underneath the water.

MYERS: It depends on how far out they were. If they were out a couple of miles, absolutely no problem. If they were right on the reef, the very close reef, they would have been very scratched up and possibly not come back, because obviously as that water went down to the reef, you were very, very close to that sharp coral. If they were below the coral, they probably didn't even know it was happening.

COSTELLO: They did not.

MYERS: Yes.

COSTELLO: It's just such an amazing, weird story.

MYERS: And we were talking about all of these sailors that are lost at sea. They weren't lost at sea. If they were outside a three mile range of the shore, they barely felt a bump in the water. If they were right there very close to the shore, very close to the ocean shore there, then that's when those guys were battered around so much, because it was only about a one or two foot bump out in the ocean itself. But then as it got closer and closer and into the more shallow water there at the shore, that's when the water obviously squeezes itself up, because there's no place for it to go except up, and then it goes on land.

COSTELLO: All right. Well, let's talk about the concerns over the health of tsunami survivors now. That is starting to take center stage in Indonesia, this even as mass graves are being dug to bury the dead. Government officials think the death toll will rise as they reach parts of the country cut off by the destruction.

Mike Chinoy has the latest from Banda Aceh, Indonesia. And we warn you, the pictures you're about to see are disturbing.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

MIKE CHINOY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): We've heard the astronomical numbers, but nothing can prepare you for a scene like this -- the remains of men, women and children, about a thousand, the workers say, piled high for burial in a mass grave. The stench is overpowering, contaminating the area, killing bystanders. The grief is equally powerful.

"I lost everyone and everything," says 30-year-old Usniati (ph), "My four children and my husband are gone, gone. I was holding my 8- month-old in the waters, but the waves pulled us apart." But Usniati knows where her 3-year-old is. She found his body in the street and brought him here.

(on camera): This scene is so horrible, there are no words to describe it. And what makes it even more awful is the fact that the bodies behind me are just a small fraction of the overall number who died here.

(voice-over): "There are still a lot of bodies out there" says Alum Sol (ph) because so much of Banda Aceh was flooded by the waves."

There's no dignity in this kind of death. It feels more like a garbage dump than a grave. But in their desperate struggle to bury decomposing bodies before the danger of epidemics grows even greater, the authorities have little choice.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(END VIDEO TAPE)

COSTELLO: That was Mike Chinoy reporting from Indonesia.

For a complete list of relief agencies sending aid to disaster areas, be sure to log onto cnn.com/quake. There you'll also find a list of international hotline numbers for information about relatives and friends affected by the tsunamis. And for more information on American citizens, you can call this number -- 1-888-407-4747, 1-888- 407-4747. You can get more information on American citizens caught in the tsunamis. And in case you haven't written that down or you want more numbers, go to cnn.com. There's so much information on our Web site for you.

The United States is sending ships, planes and troops to Asia to aid in the relief effort. The Pentagon says military operations will run from a base in Thailand. Forces on the way include the USS Bonhomme Richard Expeditionary Strike Group, along with the USS Abraham Lincoln. That puts more than a dozen U.S. military ships in the area. More than 700 troops are also being sent to help with humanitarian efforts.

We're going to take a short break on DAYBREAK.

We'll be right back with more.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Several other countries also sending money and equipment to the disaster areas. And more than three dozen aid agencies are involved.

For a closer look at relief efforts, we're joined by Douglas Allen.

He's the director of the International Disaster Response Unit at the American Red Cross.

Good morning, Douglas.

DOUGLAS K. ALLEN, AMERICAN RED CROSS: Good morning.

COSTELLO: How many Americans are on their way to help out in Asia?

ALLEN: Well, we already had some people in Asia, so by the time we get totally geared up, we'll have about 15 to 20 people there.

COSTELLO: And what exactly will they do there?

ALLEN: A variety of jobs. We'll, for example, last night we sent one young woman to Sri Lanka who will assist the International Committee of the Red Cross to do the family tracing, which is a huge issue. We sent another young man to Indonesia, who will be looking at the logistics problems. We're sending another person to the Maldives Islands to look at water sanitation. And we have a special team on standby that will probably be leaving in the next couple of days with several tons of equipment.

COSTELLO: Douglas, tell us more about this family tracing.

ALLEN: Family tracing, as you know from the reports, what happens in a disaster is families get separated from each other either by sheer separation or, unfortunately, death. And the issue is to try to link these families, to either bring them peace or reconnect them with their loved ones. And this is something that the Red Cross movement worldwide excels at.

COSTELLO: Oh, what a tough job, though. A really tough job.

ALLEN: Yes, it is.

COSTELLO: You know, we're getting a lot of e-mails from our viewers. They really want to donate anything they can, but they're worried their money isn't going to where they want it to go.

Advice for them?

ALLEN: I think that the International Red Cross movement, no matter what country you live in, is, without question, one of the most venerable and responsible aid agencies in the world. And I can assure you that we are extremely careful with donor intent and we're extremely careful with where our money goes.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com


Aired December 29, 2004 - 05:00   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Straight ahead on DAYBREAK, a frightening firsthand glimpse of this weekend's tsunami disaster. The floodwaters have now gone down, but the bodies, they just keep finding more. Also, a troubling question -- could many of these deaths have been prevented? We'll look for answers this morning. And disease -- it could prove just as deadly as the tsunamis.
It is Wednesday, December 29.

This is DAYBREAK.

And good morning to you.

From the Time Warner Center in New York, I'm Carol Costello, along with Chad Myers.

Now in the news, disturbing pictures into CNN this morning. Rows of bodies filled the streets of an Indonesia province, just a fraction of the deaths from the earthquake and tsunamis in South Asia. Oh, the death count has now topped 66,000 people. We expect to hear from President Bush today about U.S. relief efforts in the wake of this disaster. Earlier, a unofficial suggested rich nations have been stingy with aid. The U.S. has now pledged $35 million.

In Baghdad, a powerful explosion kills more than 20 people. Police say insurgents lured them into a house and then set off explosives. Police officers are among the dead, but it is not clear how many.

And the revolving door at the CIA keeps spinning. This time the deputy director for intelligence is leaving. The "New York Times" says Jami Miscik was forced out by the agency's new director, Porter Goss.

To the forecast center and Chad -- good morning.

CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Good morning, Carol.

I want to flip you around the world this morning. We have some time early this 5:00 hour, or 4:00 hour Central or wherever you're living. I kind of want to give you an idea of what the folks over here actually have to deal with today, from Sri Lanka all the way back even into Thailand.

Many of the areas here get very warm weather in the afternoons here, 90 in Rangoon, 82 down in Minna and even back over here a little bit farther, Columbo at 80, with an afternoon shower. Still no picnic here as those folks try to clean up, obviously, what they have, the rescue going on here.

(WEATHER REPORT)

COSTELLO: The scope of the tsunami disaster grows larger day by day. Here is the latest for you. More than 66,000 dead. We just got that number in seconds ago, that death toll, it's expected to go much higher, though. Hundreds of thousands of people still homeless this morning. There are fears deadly diseases could break out among them. It was a magnitude 9.0 earthquake that triggered the huge killer waves. It is the most powerful quake to hit the planet in 40 years. And you're watching new video we got in overnight of more vacationers taking home video and trying to escape the wall of water that came upon them.

As I said, the death count has been steadily rising in Asia, especially in Sri Lanka, in the wake of those waves. One of the hardest hit areas is outside of Galle on the southwest corner of the island nation.

CNN's Satinder Bindra joins us from there with the latest.

SATINDER BINDRA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Carol, there's an awful lot of destruction here all along Sri Lanka's coast. Homes are destroyed. Offices are destroyed and even municipal offices here, almost all the infrastructure here has gone. But slowly, relief efforts are getting underway and international relief, too, is arriving here in this part of southern Sri Lanka.

But one very, very major concern, there's hundreds of rotting corpses everywhere and as the temperature rises here, there's a greater risk of disease. These corpses carry viruses. They carry bacteria. So health officials are extremely concerned.

Another problem here, with so much destruction, there is the problem of looting and some people are getting very, very angry. Tempers are running hot.

COSTELLO: Satinder, I wanted to ask you a question. I was just like lost in these horrible pictures that you're sending to us from Sri Lanka. I wanted to ask you about the bodies. I know they're burying them in mass graves, which means they're burying them quickly to try to avoid disease. But family members don't have time to get to them.

Is there anything being done to help these families figure out if their loved ones have died or where they are?

BINDRA: Well, everything is being done to help. But the scale of this tragedy is so intense, in some cases, entire families have been wiped out so there's no one to recover bodies. I was at a hospital recently, Carol, where in the past two days 800 bodies had been brought there. Out of these, 300 remained unidentified. So hospital staff had no choice but to organization mass burials.

Now, they're under orders from authorities to do this quickly because the number one fear here remains disease.

I should also add that drinking water supplies are very, very important. But slowly and gradually we are noticing water supplies are getting to this area. There's bottled water available now in some parts of southern Sri Lanka and also trucks are carrying large plastic containers, large black plastic containers, and people are slowly getting access to better drinking water -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Satinder Bindra reporting live from Sri Lanka this morning.

The disaster has left thousands of people missing, as you heard, and it's left family and friends desperate to find them. On a hard hit resort island in Thailand, people are crowding around a bulletin board showing photos of the missing. You see it there. Stunned tourists have been holding up signs with the names of missing friends or relatives. It just so reminds you of the aftermath of September 11, doesn't it?

Let's go back now to the testifying moments when that tsunami hit.

Survivors provide the most chilling accounts, both with their videotapes and their haunted memories. Take a look at this amazing survivor tape.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's coming in. It's coming again.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's coming again?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. It's coming again.

(CROSSTALK)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's coming again, your way. It's coming again.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: This video from tsunami survivor Frederic Bornesand, a Swedish police officer vacationing in Thailand with his girlfriend. Here he tells CNN just what happened in this look beyond the sound bite.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

FREDERIC BORNESAND, TSUNAMI SURVIVOR: We saw a lot of water coming in and after the first wave, I don't think anyone thought that it could come with more water. So after the first wave, I just went down to see if I could help someone. And while trying to do that, the second wave was coming.

When the first wave came, I went up and after the first wave I got back down again and the second wave was much, much larger than the first one. So when the second wave came, I was forced toward the windows and to the lobby and when I came back again, there was so much to do to help the old man and to clear the way to get him up one or two floors. It was hard work.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Bornesand says the elderly man there was accompanied by an elderly woman whose fate, well, he just doesn't know what happened to them this morning.

Cnn.com is posting appeals for missing loved ones. If you're seeking news of friends and relatives in areas affected by the killer waves, you can send your e-mails to tsunami@cnn.com. That's tsunami@cnn.com.

Experts believe thousands of lives could have been saved by a tsunami warning system. But no such system exists in the Indian Ocean. But a version is in place in the Pacific and scientists say it's just a matter of time until it'll be put to good use.

CNN's Frank Buckley has more for you.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

FRANK BUCKLEY, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The devastation in Southern Asia came without warning, as it did in 1946 in Hawaii, when more than 150 people died from a tsunami; as it did in 1964, after an earthquake in Alaska created tsunamis, killing at least 130 people. Both events prompted the creation of tsunami warning centers, this one in Hawaii and another in Alaska. Scientists at the center say a tsunami will again someday hit the Western U.S. CHARLES MCCREERY, DIRECTOR, PACIFIC TSUNAMI WARNING CENTER: We don't know whether it's going to come tomorrow or whether it could be another 10 or 20 years before the next one. But it will come.

BUCKLEY: Experts say coastal residents in the Western U.S. are at risk, a million in California alone. But in the hours it would take a large tsunami to cross the Pacific Ocean, deep ocean sensors and other instruments would provide enough information to the warning centers to allow scientists to predict where and when water would come ashore, so that emergency management officials could warn local residents of impending danger.

JEFF LADOUCE, CHAIRMAN, INTERNATIONAL TSUNAMI INFORMATION CENTER: Although there will be casualties, I don't believe the casualties will be anywhere near as extensive as what they are. Obviously, the goal is no casualties.

BUCKLEY: Jeff LaDouce of the National Weather Service heads an effort to reduce the potentially devastating effects of tsunamis. He works with state emergency management officials like George Crawford of Washington State, who has developed evacuation routes and other plans based on projections like this one, illustrating a potential event in Seattle, Washington, of where a tsunami would go.

GEORGE CRAWFORD, MANAGER, WASHINGTON EARTHQUAKE PROGRAM: Where do I see potential traffic problems? Where's the best place to do mass care?

BUCKLEY (on camera): But emergency management officials say coastal residents should also listen to the warnings from the earth itself. They say people along a coastline who experience an earthquake strong enough that it makes it difficult to stand should immediately move to higher ground.

(voice-over): Quakes like those might generate local tsunamis that could come ashore within minutes of a temblor, which is why LaDouce and others say coastal residents should always be prepared to evacuate immediately after a quake.

LADOUCE: We probably will not be able to save everyone, but we will save people's lives based on the work that we've done.

BUCKLEY: Because a tsunami could happen here and will happen again.

Frank Buckley, CNN, Los Angeles.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: They survived the horrific walls of water, but can they endure the threats ahead? At 19 minutes past, how the focus in Indonesia is shifting from the dead to the living.

Relief workers haven't been able to get to remote areas in Thailand until now. The country's resort islands were packed with tourists. We'll have more on that at 34 minutes past.

And enough bodies to fill 19 football fields. At 52 minutes after, why health officials fear that number could double.

Right now, though, a look at what else is making news this Wednesday morning.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(STOCK MARKET REPORT)

COSTELLO: Your news, money, weather and sports.

It's 5:15 Eastern.

Here's what's all new this morning.

The death toll across Asia continues to rise. More than 66,000 people are now dead from those tsunamis. Tens of thousands more are still missing. Officials say disease could kill as many people as the tsunamis have.

In Baghdad, at least 20 people died after Iraqi police were lured into a house loaded with explosives. As police entered, the bombs went off.

In money news, another avenue for disaster relief has opened up online. Amazon.com is giving customers a chance to donate to the tsunami relief efforts on their Web page. So far, it's collected more than $950,000, and it did that in a very short period of time.

In culture, it's been a pretty good year on Broadway. Boosted by Billy Crystal's one man show, "700 Sundays," ticket sales are up. Broadway productions grossed nearly $750 million. More than 11 million people attended shows on the Great White Way.

In sports, the Suns' streak has set. The San Antonio Spurs downed the Phoenix Suns 115-94, to end their 11 game winning streak. But the Suns still have the best record in the NBA.

To the forecast center and Chad.

MYERS: Carol, did you see Oregon State bet Notre Dame last night in football?

COSTELLO: No, I did not.

MYERS: It was the late game. I think it was still on when I got here. Holy cow, those guys were playing late.

Good morning, everybody.

(WEATHER REPORT)

COSTELLO: Actually, stick around, Chad, because I want you to help me out with these satellite images that we're going to show our viewers.

MYERS: Oh, is this the Earth Viewer?

COSTELLO: This is the coast...

MYERS: Yes, go ahead.

COSTELLO: Yes. This is the Earth Viewer and this was taken along the coast of Sri Lanka before the earthquake occurred.

MYERS: Yes. This is from Digital Globe. This is a, what, this is back about in June or July they took this picture, right? I think we can get a lot closer to this at some point in time, too, but this is what the shoreline looked like. You can see, obviously, the beach there and all the homes and everything a block or two inland. Now...

COSTELLO: And then the next satellite image we're going to see was taken four hours after the earthquake struck.

So what are we seeing, Chad?

MYERS: Well, I don't know. I've seen better pictures than this one, where it's zoomed in much closer. You can see, obviously, the torrents of water back out to the west as that water is being still sucked back around there. An awful lot of a dirtier ocean. Obviously, a lot of that dirt came in from what was on land. And, you know, maybe we can get that better picture a little bit later. You could actually see the destruction one or two blocks all the way in where those buildings really weren't where they were supposed to be and obviously weren't where they were before.

COSTELLO: Well, you can see...

MYERS: But there's very...

COSTELLO: You can see that giant wall of water, though.

MYERS: Very little of the coastline left. Very little of the sand at all exposed. It was completely washed back out to sea.

COSTELLO: You know what's really strange, Chad, and we're going to show more on this story a little later on DAYBREAK, some people were scuba diving.

MYERS: Yes?

COSTELLO: They were under the water.

MYERS: Right.

COSTELLO: This thing hit, they came up, had no idea what had occurred.

MYERS: Right.

COSTELLO: They could not feel it underneath the water.

MYERS: It depends on how far out they were. If they were out a couple of miles, absolutely no problem. If they were right on the reef, the very close reef, they would have been very scratched up and possibly not come back, because obviously as that water went down to the reef, you were very, very close to that sharp coral. If they were below the coral, they probably didn't even know it was happening.

COSTELLO: They did not.

MYERS: Yes.

COSTELLO: It's just such an amazing, weird story.

MYERS: And we were talking about all of these sailors that are lost at sea. They weren't lost at sea. If they were outside a three mile range of the shore, they barely felt a bump in the water. If they were right there very close to the shore, very close to the ocean shore there, then that's when those guys were battered around so much, because it was only about a one or two foot bump out in the ocean itself. But then as it got closer and closer and into the more shallow water there at the shore, that's when the water obviously squeezes itself up, because there's no place for it to go except up, and then it goes on land.

COSTELLO: All right. Well, let's talk about the concerns over the health of tsunami survivors now. That is starting to take center stage in Indonesia, this even as mass graves are being dug to bury the dead. Government officials think the death toll will rise as they reach parts of the country cut off by the destruction.

Mike Chinoy has the latest from Banda Aceh, Indonesia. And we warn you, the pictures you're about to see are disturbing.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

MIKE CHINOY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): We've heard the astronomical numbers, but nothing can prepare you for a scene like this -- the remains of men, women and children, about a thousand, the workers say, piled high for burial in a mass grave. The stench is overpowering, contaminating the area, killing bystanders. The grief is equally powerful.

"I lost everyone and everything," says 30-year-old Usniati (ph), "My four children and my husband are gone, gone. I was holding my 8- month-old in the waters, but the waves pulled us apart." But Usniati knows where her 3-year-old is. She found his body in the street and brought him here.

(on camera): This scene is so horrible, there are no words to describe it. And what makes it even more awful is the fact that the bodies behind me are just a small fraction of the overall number who died here.

(voice-over): "There are still a lot of bodies out there" says Alum Sol (ph) because so much of Banda Aceh was flooded by the waves."

There's no dignity in this kind of death. It feels more like a garbage dump than a grave. But in their desperate struggle to bury decomposing bodies before the danger of epidemics grows even greater, the authorities have little choice.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(END VIDEO TAPE)

COSTELLO: That was Mike Chinoy reporting from Indonesia.

For a complete list of relief agencies sending aid to disaster areas, be sure to log onto cnn.com/quake. There you'll also find a list of international hotline numbers for information about relatives and friends affected by the tsunamis. And for more information on American citizens, you can call this number -- 1-888-407-4747, 1-888- 407-4747. You can get more information on American citizens caught in the tsunamis. And in case you haven't written that down or you want more numbers, go to cnn.com. There's so much information on our Web site for you.

The United States is sending ships, planes and troops to Asia to aid in the relief effort. The Pentagon says military operations will run from a base in Thailand. Forces on the way include the USS Bonhomme Richard Expeditionary Strike Group, along with the USS Abraham Lincoln. That puts more than a dozen U.S. military ships in the area. More than 700 troops are also being sent to help with humanitarian efforts.

We're going to take a short break on DAYBREAK.

We'll be right back with more.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

COSTELLO: Several other countries also sending money and equipment to the disaster areas. And more than three dozen aid agencies are involved.

For a closer look at relief efforts, we're joined by Douglas Allen.

He's the director of the International Disaster Response Unit at the American Red Cross.

Good morning, Douglas.

DOUGLAS K. ALLEN, AMERICAN RED CROSS: Good morning.

COSTELLO: How many Americans are on their way to help out in Asia?

ALLEN: Well, we already had some people in Asia, so by the time we get totally geared up, we'll have about 15 to 20 people there.

COSTELLO: And what exactly will they do there?

ALLEN: A variety of jobs. We'll, for example, last night we sent one young woman to Sri Lanka who will assist the International Committee of the Red Cross to do the family tracing, which is a huge issue. We sent another young man to Indonesia, who will be looking at the logistics problems. We're sending another person to the Maldives Islands to look at water sanitation. And we have a special team on standby that will probably be leaving in the next couple of days with several tons of equipment.

COSTELLO: Douglas, tell us more about this family tracing.

ALLEN: Family tracing, as you know from the reports, what happens in a disaster is families get separated from each other either by sheer separation or, unfortunately, death. And the issue is to try to link these families, to either bring them peace or reconnect them with their loved ones. And this is something that the Red Cross movement worldwide excels at.

COSTELLO: Oh, what a tough job, though. A really tough job.

ALLEN: Yes, it is.

COSTELLO: You know, we're getting a lot of e-mails from our viewers. They really want to donate anything they can, but they're worried their money isn't going to where they want it to go.

Advice for them?

ALLEN: I think that the International Red Cross movement, no matter what country you live in, is, without question, one of the most venerable and responsible aid agencies in the world. And I can assure you that we are extremely careful with donor intent and we're extremely careful with where our money goes.

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