says Thomas Leuenberger, a Swiss tourist who survived the Indian Ocean
tsunami in 2004, when I ask him why he comes back to Khao Lak, Thailand
every year for the anniversary.
tsunami in 2004, when I ask him why he comes back to Khao Lak, Thailand
every year for the anniversary.
He didn’t need to tell me how
traumatised he’d been by the experience because when we first met he’d
had to take a moment to calm down and recover after listening to fellow
survivors recount their experiences.
traumatised he’d been by the experience because when we first met he’d
had to take a moment to calm down and recover after listening to fellow
survivors recount their experiences.
He was just one of several
foreign tourists and Thai people whom we met while covering the
commemoration of a decade since the killer wave struck.
foreign tourists and Thai people whom we met while covering the
commemoration of a decade since the killer wave struck.
They all spoke of the sharp pain of the memories they carry with them, all saying it is as if it happened yesterday.
Khao
Lak has changed tremendously since that day. The streets are bustling
with families on holiday, backpackers and tour operators. German
bakeries, Indian restaurants, Italian cafés and of course Thai eateries
jostle for customers.
Lak has changed tremendously since that day. The streets are bustling
with families on holiday, backpackers and tour operators. German
bakeries, Indian restaurants, Italian cafés and of course Thai eateries
jostle for customers.
Before the tsunami struck, it was a
relatively quiet tourist destination. There weren’t the glitzy big
resorts that are typical of Phuket, a few kilometres south off the
coast.
relatively quiet tourist destination. There weren’t the glitzy big
resorts that are typical of Phuket, a few kilometres south off the
coast.
Nevertheless, thousands of foreigners, almost as many as
Thai people were killed. The place was laid waste by the force of the
massive waves, only a few trees and the shells of some of the strong
buildings were left standing.
Thai people were killed. The place was laid waste by the force of the
massive waves, only a few trees and the shells of some of the strong
buildings were left standing.
Dead bodies of men, but mostly women and children were scattered all over the place and the stench was overwhelming.
One
Thai woman who owns a guesthouse and bar with her Swiss husband told me
her greatest fear at that time was how she would make a living if the
tourists didn’t come back.
Thai woman who owns a guesthouse and bar with her Swiss husband told me
her greatest fear at that time was how she would make a living if the
tourists didn’t come back.
Somphit Lambert told me she and her
husband only had the clothes they were wearing; everything else was
destroyed. But slowly and painfully she and others rebuilt their lives
out of the trauma and grief, finding the courage and endurance to
reconstruct their homes and businesses, literally brick by brick.
husband only had the clothes they were wearing; everything else was
destroyed. But slowly and painfully she and others rebuilt their lives
out of the trauma and grief, finding the courage and endurance to
reconstruct their homes and businesses, literally brick by brick.
I
hadn’t been back to Phuket for holidays since the tsunami hit. I
didn’t feel that I could relax and enjoy myself in a place where so many
had died and there had been so much suffering; That changed this week
as I saw for myself how people from around the world had supported each
other on every level so that Khao Lak is thriving today even more than
before the tsunami.
hadn’t been back to Phuket for holidays since the tsunami hit. I
didn’t feel that I could relax and enjoy myself in a place where so many
had died and there had been so much suffering; That changed this week
as I saw for myself how people from around the world had supported each
other on every level so that Khao Lak is thriving today even more than
before the tsunami.
Friends, governments, aid organisations and
the international community have turned the world’s first global
disaster into a story of survival and endurance.
the international community have turned the world’s first global
disaster into a story of survival and endurance.
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