Tsunami 'Live Photos' - Analysis
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This series of photographs, variously labeled "Tsunami Live Photos," "Pictures of Tsunami," etc., began circulating via email within days of the devastating Indian Ocean tsunami of December 26, 2004.
They are circulating under false pretenses.
Notwithstanding the fact that at least one of the images was published under the headline "Tsunami Death Toll Could Pass 100,0000" in the Calgary Herald and was similarly mislabeled by other media outlets, these are not photographs of the 2004 tsunami. Rather, they appear to document the annual tidal bore in the Qiantangjiang (Qiantang) River near Hangzhou, China as it occurred on September 9, 2002 (see published example in the Daily Times of Pakistan, dated September 10, 2002).Another widely circulated photo purporting to show the 2004 tsunami inundating a major coastal city in either Thailand or Indonesia has been established to be a hoax.
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Sources and further reading:
Tidal Bore: Qiantangjiang River Near Hangzhou
Daily Times (Pakistan), 10 September 2002High Tide at Qiantang River
China Daily, 24 September 2004Calgary Flame-Out
NewsDesigner.com, 30 December 2004Riding the Wave
City Weekend (China), 10 September 2003Canadian Media Hoaxed by 'Tsunami' Photo
Editor and Publisher, 3 January 2005Aussie Media World Champ for Tsunami Fakes
Crikey.com, 4 January 2005
Last updated: 02/27/10
