Malaysians have been a complacent lot. We thought our blessed land is spared from the wrath of Mother Nature. Recent tidings have proved us wrong and shown us that disaster knows no political borders as was clearly demonstrated by the devastation that occured on Sunday morning. We were caught unprepared.

My heart and prayer go out to all the victims and their families. To fellow Malaysians in the northern states, I wish you nothing but the very best in getting through the days ahead. And to the owners of these cars, I hope your motor insurance policy covers natural disasters or you're likely to face problems recovering losses.

If you're moved by poignant headlines the like of Couple tormented by missing first-born, Nine-year-old missing in maiden trip to Penang and Tragic loss for bus driver, kindly contribute to the relief funds set up by the local dailies. It's what little we could do to lend a hand to those affected. (UPDATE: If you have a Maybank account, you could transfer fund online to the Star/Maybank Tsunami Relief Fund.)