A tsunami is a series of huge waves that can kill many people and destroy a whole country. A terrible tsunami disaster happened on December 26, 2004. 【小题1】 It is said that it might not be the worst and a future tsunami in the Indian Ocean could affect Singapore, Somalia, Western Australia, and many other places.

The word “tsunami” comes from Japanese words. A tsunami can be caused by natural phenomenon such as landslides, volcanic eruptions, large asteroid impacts (小行星撞击地球), and earthquakes occurring underwater or close to a body of water. 【小题2】

A tsunami usually cannot be seen while it travels through deep water. 【小题3】 On December 26, 2004, some people saw the sea suddenly disappeared just before the waves came and knew that something was wrong. Some people managed to run fast from it and survived, but many people, who did not see any signs or did not run fast enough, died.

【小题4】 If you are in a coastal area where the water suddenly draws back, the only chance of survival is to run for high ground or for the high floors of high-rise buildings. But because it moves too fast for people to run from it, only those who are lucky manage to survive.

Since the tsunami of 2004, many people know more about tsunami. 【小题5】