Lingering Effects of the Tsunami

The Lingering Effects of the Tsunami

Four to five months after the deadly tsunami struck near Phuket Island in the Andaman Sea in southern Thailand, there are still reminders of it that pop up, not letting you forget. For example, we sometimes saw photos on poster boards displaying the faces of those persons or entire families that were missing. Others spoke to us of jobs lost in Ko Phi Phi islands, where the tsunami hit the hardest. Many Thais who worked there on a seasonal basis had no more work after entire hotels, restaurants, and roads were wiped away. Just north of Phuket, in a town called Ko Lak, fields of mud reigned where trees used to stand, and broken houses and reconstruction efforts all combined to paint a dismal picture. When we said we were going to Phuket, the Thais invariably said, “Tsunami! Tsunami!” Some asked if we were afraid that it would come back, while others joked about it, holding onto trees and pretending to be swept away. But I think it was just their way of dealing with the loss and the destruction. As the old saying goes, “You either laugh or you cry!”

The worst-hit area of Thailand was an island called Ko Phi Phi in the Andaman Sea. We spent three days on this island, and evidence of the destruction was still in abundance. Everything close to the beachfront is gone – entire tops of palm trees were torn away, some houses that were still standing looked ready to cave in, entire hotels and bungalows were torn from the ground, oftentimes with only a swimming pool standing as a reminder, houses were under construction and restaurants and hotels under restoration. A group of foreign volunteers worked to rebuild a road and replant trees and plants. Waves are said to have reached 30 ft. in height! The local population of about 5500 had been decimated to about 1000. Everyone here knew someone who had been lost. The Thai government has not yet decided whether or not to allow rebuilding of some of those large hotel complexes, as many think that the island was over-developed to start with. The government has allotted only 500 USD in reconstruction aid. The rest is coming as donations from foreigners, many of whom have businesses on the island.

We met two foreign dive instructors – a couple – who had been in Ko Phi Phi when it happened. He was out to sea with a group of beginners on a boat, just starting the first dive of the day. He thought it was strange when they dove in and could see “into what seemed like eternity” just below them, but had zero visibility on the sides – as he said, “it was just like a wall.” They got back in the boat and he called off the dives for the rest of the day. He said that there was a strong current, but that the sea was eerily calm. They couldn’t come ashore until 3 PM that day. There was no way to reach land, and no one who had a boat on the land dared venture into the sea. However, it was ironic that it was those who were at sea that were saved. None of them were injured, riding on what seemed to be very still waters. It was those on land that were to be the victims. 10-12 ft. waves ripped up entire bungalows and with them, the people that were sleeping in their beds. The diver’s girlfriend was on land at the same time that her boyfriend was out to sea. She saw the water go out at sea and her instincts made her warn the people around her to make a run for it. Unfortunately, people just laughed at her. She made it to high ground and helped to carry injured people up the hillside. They were told to evacuate the island two or three days later, when fear of disease spread.

Apparently, the water on the island used to be clean. The water that came out of our sink and out of our showerhead was the brownest water I’ve ever seen in my life, though. It looked like mud coming out of the faucet. And this is the water that we used to shower and wash our clothing, etc.! The water supply is supposed to get cleaner as the island is fixed up.

Rebuilding was going on at a strong pace in Ko Phi Phi, and the island was officially “re-opened” for business in mid-June. In Ko Lak, just to the north of Phuket, the rebuilding effort will take a bit more time, and they are still recruiting foreign volunteers.

Although foreign tourists have started to find their way back to the areas of southern Thailand that were hit by the tsunami, Asian tourists have stayed away because they are afraid of the victims’ ghosts.