Class 8 English Chapter 2 Practice Question Answers - The Tsunami

Q1: What is a Tsunami?
Ans: Tsunami is a big and powerful wave caused by earthquakes under the sea.

Q2: What is Katchall?
Ans: Katchall is an island in Andaman.

Q3: How far are Katchall and Nicobar Islands from each other?
Ans: Katchall and Nicobar Islands are more than a hundred miles from each other.

Q4: What is Nancowry?
Ans: Nancowry is an island in Nicobar.

Q5: Word – Meaning from the given chapter:
i. Daze
Ans: Knock out
ii. Giant wave
Ans: A big wave
iii. Clinging
Ans: Holding onto
iv. Uproot
Ans: To pull up or take out something

Q6: Who was Sanjeev? What happened when he heard about the tsunami?
Ans: Sanjeev was a policeman who was serving in Katchall Island. He managed to save himself and his family from the tsunami. But as soon as he heard their cook’s wife crying for help, he went back to rescue her, and a wave swept them away.

Q7: What happened when the tremors stopped?
Ans: Everyone realized that the tremors had stopped but they saw a rise in sea level. There was chaos all around, and two of their children caught their relative’s hand and rushed in the opposite direction. His relatives, wife, and two children were swept away in the sea, and only he and three children were saved.

Q8: Who was Almas Javed? What happened to her family members? How was she saved?
Ans: Almas Javed was ten years old when she faced a tsunami. Her grandfather was hit on the head by something; he was swept away along with her father. Her mother and aunt were swept away from the tree they were clinging to.

Q9: Who was Meghna?
Ans: Meghna was a thirteen-year-old girl who along with her family and seventy-seven other people was swept away.

Q10: Who was Ignesious? Why did his wife wake him up? What did he do thereafter?
Ans: Ignesious worked as a manager at a cooperative society in Katchall. His wife felt an earthquake, and she woke him up at 6 a.m. He immediately kept his television on the ground so that it would not break, and the family rushed out of the house.

Q11: What signs do Penny Smith and her daughter Tilly notice about the Tsunami?
Ans: Penny Smith noticed that the seawater was boiling and the beach was getting smaller and smaller. No one knew what was happening. Tilly Smith noticed something was unusual about the seawater. She saw a rise in its water level and that it started foaming, bubbling, and forming whirlpools.

Q12: Who are the members of the Smith family? What were they doing in Thailand? What do they face there?
Ans: The Smith family was a family of four people. Tilly Smith, a ten-year-old schoolgirl, her seven-year-old sister, and their parents Penny and Colin Smith. They all had gone to Thailand to celebrate Christmas. Tilly Smith and her family faced Tsunami on 26 December 2004.

Q13: What happened when the giant waves slammed into the coast in India and Sri Lanka?
Ans: When the giant waves slammed into the coast in India and Sri Lanka, the animals, both wild and domestic, became aware of what was going to happen. All the animals moved to safer areas. Some say that elephants started screaming and ran for higher ground; dogs didn’t step out of the house, zoo animals carved into their shelters, and flamingos refused to leave their low-lying breeding grounds.

Q14: Where was Meghna found?
Ans: After Meghna was swept away by tsunami waves, she spent two days on a wooden block, floating on the sea until she was brought to the shore by a wave. Meghna was spotted walking on the seashore in a daze.

Q15: How did Tilly figure out that it was an earthquake under the sea?
Ans: Tilly knew that it was an earthquake under the sea because she remembered her geography lessons in England. She remembered that her geography teacher had talked about how tsunamis can be caused by earthquakes, volcanoes, and landslides. She warned everyone about it, and they, along with other tourists, went back to the hotel.

Q16: What did people see in the Yala National Park an hour before the tsunami hit?
Ans: People or the visitors in the Yala National Park saw that three elephants started running away from Patanangala Beach an hour before the tsunami hit. A gentleman from Sri Lanka who lived on the coast near Galle said that his two dogs also didn’t go for their daily run on the beach. He added that his dogs were always excited to go out but the day the tsunami hit they refused to go; he was thankful that they saved theirs and his life.

Q17: Why was Tilly Smith honored as a hero?
Ans: Tilly Smith was honored as a hero as she saved many lives from being hit by tsunami waves. During her visit to Thailand along with her family, while they were on the beach, she and her mother noticed something unusual about the beach. She then remembered the lesson her geography teacher gave about disasters and how earthquakes and volcanoes cause cyclones and tsunamis. She asked everyone to move as far as possible from the beach. She saved not only her family’s life but also many other tourists on the beach.

Q18: What do many people believe about animals concerning natural disasters?
Ans: Many people believe that animals have some sixth sense that lets them know when the earth will shake. Some experts believe that it is because of an animal’s hearing ability. They believe that acute hearing in animals helps them in hearing or feeling the vibrations of the earth. They can sense when a disaster is approaching, way before machines by humans. Sometimes even they don’t collect data accurately. And even humans fail to understand these changes in nature.

Q19: Write a short note on tsunamis. What do you think of the people that were affected by it?
Ans: Tsunami is a giant and powerful wave. Mostly, it is caused by earthquakes under the sea. The tsunami hit many parts of Thailand and India on 26 December 2004. In India, it affected the lives of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, and the Tamil Nadu coast. The people who were affected by the tsunami and survived its aftermath are some of the most courageous people. They lost their families, homes, friends, savings, and assets but are still moving on with life with strength. In fact, all the people that face such disasters and survive are some of the fortunate and the brave people.

Q20: How tsunami affect the areas along India’s Cuddalore coast?
Ans: Tsunami affected many parts of the world. In India, along the Cuddalore coast, lives of thousands of people and houses were destroyed. However, buffaloes, goats, and dogs were found as they were, unharmed! Even the country Sri Lanka, which suffered a great loss of human lives, did not detect any loss in animal life, at least in its Yala National Park. There are a variety of animals found in Yala National Park, such as elephants, leopards, and 130 species of birds. The national park was hit by a tsunami as it washed away sixty visitors, but no one saw the single carcass of animals except two water buffaloes.