Warning system blighted by bad equipment and poor communications

Faulty equipment, poor communications and cumbersome bureaucracy were blamed today for the failure of nations around the Indian Ocean’s rim to warn of one of the world’s most devastating natural disasters.

A sensor system in Indonesia that could have warned of Sunday’s huge waves was not working because it had been hit by lightning. In India, bureaucrats faxed a warning of possible disaster to the wrong official. A Thai meteorologist acting on a hunch sent an alert to radio stations, but it does not appear the warning was widely relayed.