Scientists said this week's death toll would have been reduced if the region had one.
About 25,000 Sri Lankan troops were deployed to crack down on looting, track escaped inmates and help in rescue efforts as helicopters dropped medicine and rescue teams to remote areas.
Sri Lanka's government declared a national disaster, as did the neighboring Maldives, a low-lying string of coral atolls where 43 people were killed.
Towns in Indonesia's Aceh province on Sumatra, the closest land to the earthquake's epicenter, were swamped. The Health Ministry said at least 4,991 people were killed in Indonesia, hundreds missing and at least a million left homeless.
In India, the waves swept away boats, homes and vehicles, killing at least 2,958 people -- most of the victims in Tamil Nadu state, officials said. At least 20,000 people were evacuated, officials said.
In Thailand, where tourist season is at its peak as Europeans escape frigid winters, the government said 839 people were killed and 7,271 injured.
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Sri Lanka's death toll climbs to 10,000
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RSS