Religious Affairs Ministry Holds Tsunami Seminar
By Azaraimy HH

Bandar Seri Begawan – The Ministry of Religious Affairs through the Islamic Dakwah Centre yesterday organised a special charity seminar to bring more donations for the Tsunami Disaster Relief Fund.

The tsunami of 2004 was one of the deadliest disasters in modern history and it hit hard in Banda Aceh where 99.9 per cent of the population were Muslim.

The event was also aimed at giving the participants a spiritual reminder on the disastrous power that could be unleashed on the day of judgment.

The seminar held yesterday at the Islamic Dakwah Centre was attended by government officers, village heads and heads of various communities in the country.

The event will also be held in other districts.

Yesterday's seminar was conducted by Dr Hj Ismuhadi bin Hj Abdullah, who recounted stories from the tsunami survivors and also reminded followers of the Islamic faith about the judgment day.

In one of the stories, he said how a survivor faithful to the Almighty was able to escape from being trapped in his house when the deadly waves struck.

He said the destruction caused by the deadly tsunami was unprecedented and beyond imagination.

When the earthquake struck off the Indian Ocean, just north of Simeulue island off the western coast of northern Sumatra, it brought three tidal waves.

The first wave was less terrifying than the second one. One survivor told him that the second one was as high as two coconut trees which, from afar, looked harmless but came roaring like a thunderous jet engine.

The destructive power was so great that even before the wall of water hit a building, it already started to collapse due to the tremendous pressure produced by the killer waves which, according to some survivors, produced a very terrible smell.

The total energy released by the earthquake in the Indian Ocean was estimated at 2.0 Exajoules, more than twice the energy released during the World War II, including the two bombings in Hiroshima.

The shift of mass and the massive release of energy slightly altered the Earth's rotation.

The exact figure is yet to be determined, but theoretical models suggest the earthquake shortened the length of a day by 2.68 microseconds.

Dr Hj Ismuhadi cautioned the participants on how unimaginable destruction could come without warningly during the judgment day and reminded them to take lessons from the tsunami to remain faithful and obedient to the Almighty. -- Courtesy of Borneo Bulletin

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