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Our hotel was located on the beach in the town of
Khao Lak. That morning, after breakfast, we went for a
walk on the beach. After we had walked for about half an
hour, we realized that the sea water was drawing back
out into the sea. We were amazed at this phenomenon, and
just stood there, wondering what had caused it.
All of a sudden, we saw a huge splash out by the
reefs that lay about two miles off the coast. Then, we
saw a wall of water rising high into the sky. People
were shouting, "Run!" So we started to run back to the
hotel, that was behind us. In the gardens, we met some
people who shouted, "Climb a tree!" So I ran to the
nearest tree. As I was starting to climb that tree, I
first heard the deafening roar of the wave. When the
wave hit me, I was smashed into a tree branch and then
was swept away. The waters carried me through the
streets of the town. I sank underwater a few times, but,
somehow, managed to grab on it and hold onto it for a
while, until it crashed into a pile of rubble. At the
impact, some of the rubble fell down and half-buried me.
The roof segment was jammed tight in the rubble with me
on it. I just lay there, for I don't know how long, too
terrified and exhausted to try to get out. After some
time, the water receded. Then, some people came and
helped me out of the rubble. They also showed me a way
into a big empty building which seemed like a warehouse.
I went to sleep on the floor. I woke up to the sound of
voices speaking Swedish. So I got up and went over to
them. It was a Swedish couple that I had met that
morning. They told me that they had lost their
six-year-old son in the tsunami. I did not have any idea
where my own family was, so I decided to stay with this
couple. The, some Thai people came and said, "More
tsunamis are coming in two hours" and insisted that we
leave with them. It was when I stepped outside that I
had a clearer picture of what had happened. The town was
reduced to huge piles of rubble, smashed cars and
houses.
On that road, we met many other tourists and local
Thais, who were all heading for the mountains. When we
finally arrived at the mountain camp, I just lay down
and slept. Some of the local people brought food for
everyone, but I was unable to eat or drink. Early the
next morning, we were picked up by an ambulance and
taken to a nearby hospital. During that drive, we passed
through destroyed villages and towns. when we finally
arrived at the hospital, we got our wounds washed and
bandaged. the staff asked us to write down our names and
the names of the persons we had lost. I searched through
the wards in the hope that I would find my family, but I
found no one I knew. I tried to figure out what to do
next, but I was too confused to think clearly. Finally,
I decided to go to Bangkok with some of the other
people. we were taken to Phuket Airport where we were
given free tickets to Bangkok. When we arrived at
Bangkok Airport, I collapsed from dehydration and
exhaustion, and was hospitalized at a hospital in
Bangkok. After a night at the hospital, I realized that
I should call home to Sweden. I called my uncle, who was
overjoyed to hear my voice. He told me that the rest of
my family had already called home and they were all
together at a hospital back in Phuket. My sister was
badly injured and could not be moved for some time. |
