Tsunami spare Diego Garcia
A strategic U.S. military base on the island of Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean was not affected by the seaquake Dec. 26 that produced tsunami which devastated the region.
Diego Garcia is in the Chagos Archipelago west of the Chagos Trench, a 400-mile-long underwater canyon that goes as deep as 15,000 feet in places. The depth of the trench reduced tsunami from the quake to only a six-foot tidal surge.
Technically a British possession, Diego Garcia is home to 4,000 U.S. personnel. The island has a sheltered harbor to accommodate submarines, warships, and military supply pre-positioning vessels.
