The people were suffering.

Their food was taken away.  Their homes were destroyed.  They were separated from their loved ones.  People were dying.

The people were lost.

There was so much rubble, they were trapped in their own home.  Their town was no longer a town.  It was just a pile of debris.

But of course, they couldn't do anything about it.

They were the only survivors of the mega tsunami, and there was no one out there to save them.