About how many people were killed in the attack of tsunami?

Nearly one quarter of one million people were killed by the tsunami. Entire communities were wiped out, houses destroyed, lives ruined. Now, four years after this catastrophic event, the Red Cross reports 97 percent of houses planned for people affected by the tsunami are finished or under construction, and hundreds of new hos-pitals, clinics and schools have been built back better. The International Federation’s special representative for tsunami recovery, Jerry Tolbot, tells VOA the lives of people who lost everything also have been rebuilt and are improving. Talbot says people can and are being taught how to mitigate future risks.