Thai tsunami system 'needs upgrade'

BANGKOK - Up to 80 percent of Thailand's tsunami warning system needs maintenance work, the deputy director-general of its disaster prevention department said on Monday, more than a decade after the region was hit by a tsunami that killed 226,000 people.

A magnitude-9.1 earthquake struck off the coast of Sumatra in Indonesia on Dec 26, 2004 and triggered a massive tsunami that caused large-scale destruction and loss of life throughout the Indian Ocean.

Popular tourist destination Thailand was among the worst affected, along with Indonesia, India and Sri Lanka. Many of the 5,395 people killed in Thailand were foreign tourists holidaying along the shores of its idyllic islands and beaches.