wake 2 
(wāk)
(wāk)n.
Idiom: 1. The visible track of turbulence left by something moving through water: the wake of a ship.
2. A track, course, or condition left behind something that has passed: The war left destruction and famine in its wake.
in the wake of
1. Following directly on.
2. In the aftermath of; as a consequence of.
[Possibly from Middle Low German, hole in the ice, of Scandinavian origin; akin to Old Norse vök.]
wake2