Should you be afraid of a tsunami in Thailand? How high is the risk of a tsunami?

Tsunamis are giant and long ocean waves that arise as a result of an underwater volcanic eruption or earthquakes with a magnitude greater than 7. During an underwater earthquake, sections of the ocean floor shift, creating a series of destructive waves. Their speed can reach 1000 km/h, and their height can be up to 50 m and above. About 80% of tsunamis occur in Pacific Ocean.

Thailand Tsunami (2004), Phuket

December 26, 2004 - this day went down in history as the day of a tragedy of gigantic proportions, which took a huge number of lives. At this time, the tsunami occurred in Phuket (2004). Patong, Karon and other beaches suffered the most. At 07:58 local time at the bottom Indian Ocean A powerful earthquake with a magnitude of up to 9.3 occurred near the island of Simelue. It caused a large series of giant waves that people around the world still remember with fear and regret. Water killers took the lives of about 300 thousand people in a few hours and caused terrible destruction on the shores of Asia.

Thailand was one of the countries that suffered huge losses from the onslaught of the tsunami. The disaster struck western part coast. In 2004, the tsunami on the beaches of Phuket completely destroyed the infrastructure: hotels, clubs, bars. These were the most famous places holidays among tourists from all over the world - Karon, Patong, Kamala, Kata. According to general estimates, several hundred people died.

The history of the beginning of the great catastrophe

It was a normal morning, when many were still in bed, but some were already relaxing on the beach. Powerful tremors occurred at the bottom of the ocean, which led to the displacement of water. The underground impacts were completely imperceptible, and therefore no one even suspected the beginning of the disaster. At a speed of 1000 km/h, the waves rushed to the shores of Thailand, Sri Lanka, Indonesia and Somalia. This is how the Phuket tsunami began (2004). Karon Beach was among the places that suffered the most.

As we approached land, the height of the water flow in some places was about 40 meters. The tsunami in Phuket in 2004 had a very powerful destructive force, even exceeding the explosion of the atomic bomb in Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

About an hour after the underwater earthquake, strange phenomena began to occur on land: somewhere the water moved 1.5 km away from the shore, the sound of the surf stopped, animals and birds began to run away in fear (to the mountains). People did not immediately understand the essence of the danger and collected shells from the shallow ocean bottom. Since the 15 m high rogue wave did not have a white crest, it was not immediately noticed from the shore. When the Phuket tsunami (2004) hit the beach, it was too late to escape. With incredible speed, the waves destroyed everything in their path. Their destructive power allowed them to penetrate two kilometers inland.

When the movement of the wave stopped, the water rushed back very quickly. The greatest danger was not the water itself, but debris, trees, cars, concrete, reinforcement, billboards - everything that threatened to take a person’s life.

Characteristics of the 2004 Phuket tsunami

The site is the western tip of the Pacific earthquake belt, where approximately 80% of the world's largest earthquakes occurred. There was a shift of the Indian plate under the Burma plate, where the length of the fault was about 1200 kilometers. The catastrophe was incredibly large, since the Indian plate on the ocean floor was common with the territory of Australia, and the Burmese plate is considered part of the Eurasian one. The plate fracture divided into two phases with a gap of several minutes. The interaction speed was two kilometers per second, and a rift was created in the direction of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

There has not been such a destructive tsunami in Phuket for eighty years. Scientists say it will be centuries before the joined plates begin to move again. According to seismologists, the tsunami in Phuket (2004) gained strength, which was equal to the energy of five megatons per hour.

Consequences of the tragedy

The consequences of the disaster were simply terrible. Phuket after the tsunami (2004) is a terrifying picture. The cars were in the hotel lobby, the boat was on the roof of the house, and the tree was in the pool. This is what the water did. The buildings that stood on the coast were completely destroyed. The Thai paradise - Phuket - was turned into hell by the tsunami (2004), a photo of which can be seen in the article. Bodies could be seen from under the wreckage of furniture, houses and cars. dead people and animals. The survivors were in such a state of shock that they could not leave the scene of the tragedy. The tsunami in Thailand in 2004 (Phuket) was not a one-time event: the wave returned twice and took the lives of 8.5 thousand people. One of elite islands Phi Phi was completely submerged. Large quantity the victims are children.

Elimination of the consequences of the disaster

Immediately after the water left, rescuers began to take measures to eliminate the consequences. The military and police were quickly mobilized and camps for victims were established. Since the island has a very hot climate, the risk of infectious contamination of water and air increased every hour. Therefore, it was necessary to find all the dead, identify them if possible and bury them. The mobilized groups worked for days without rest. Most countries of the world did not remain indifferent and sent human and material resources to help the Thai residents.

The approximate death toll in Phuket during the 2004 tsunami was 8 thousand 500 people, where 5 thousand 400 were foreign citizens from more than forty countries of the world. It was the deadliest tsunami ever known.

Conclusions of scientists and specialists

After the disaster, it was necessary to analyze the sources of the tragedy and take safety measures. The Thai authorities have joined international program monitoring phenomena in the ocean depths. Residents were alerted in case of danger, and training was provided on the rules of behavior during the siren signal. The target group of such measures was not only local residents, but also tourists.

Enormous efforts were expended to restore the infrastructure of the social sphere and tourism. Buildings were built on the island from strong reinforced concrete, where the walls were erected parallel or at an oblique angle to the expected movement of the tsunami.

Years after the tragedy

Today, thirteen years have passed since the tragedy, which claimed approximately three hundred thousand lives and left pain and suffering in the souls of people all over the world. During this time, Thailand was able to fully restore the affected areas. A year after the tragedy, residents who lost a roof over their heads were provided with new housing. The buildings were constructed from materials that could withstand natural disasters in times of danger.

Today, tourists have practically forgotten the tragedy that happened and, with even greater enthusiasm, go on vacation to the shores of the kingdom. After the tsunami in Phuket (2004), Karon beach, Patong and all the others popular places became even more beautiful. The best buildings and structures were built. And only warning signs about the danger return people to that time of natural disaster.

Russians who survived the tsunami

Phuket in 2004, Patong and other tourist beaches are vacation spots and many Russian tourists. After the tragedy, emergency staff worked around the clock at the Russian embassy in Bangkok. The headquarters received about 2,000 phone calls in one day. The first list included about 1,500 Russians who may have been on the island during the disaster.

Until January 6, a search took place for every person on the list. From the very first day of the tragedy, all the victims were helped by volunteers - Russians living in Thailand, as well as employees travel agencies. Gradually, survivors were found, and at the same time, a list was drawn up for evacuation on a Russian Emergency Situations Ministry flight. In this way, about eighty Russians and citizens of neighboring countries were sent home.

A list of missing persons was also compiled. On January 8, the compilation of the list was completed, and the search continued. It took about a year for the victims to be identified. Later, people began to be considered no longer missing, but dead.

Is it possible to come to Thailand after a global catastrophe?

After the Thai authorities and American scientists installed the world's largest deep-sea system for early detection of tsunamis. Notification of an approaching disaster occurs several hours before the disaster begins. Also, after the tragedy, a system was developed to evacuate people away from the giant waves. Even on this small island, like Phi Phi, it is possible to evacuate to the mountains.

The system, which sounds the alarm in advance, was tested on April 11, 2012, when a tsunami occurred again (everyone was evacuated; this tragedy did not bring such terrible consequences as in 2004). In addition, scientists predict that it will be decades before the next natural disaster occurs.

For those who are still afraid to relax near the sea, experienced travelers advise going to the north of the country, where the worst thing that can happen is the Chao Prai or Mekong rivers overflowing their banks. This is quite unpleasant, but not fatal.

What should you do if a tsunami happens?

The first sign of the approach of giant waves is an earthquake. Today, Thailand's security system, upon detecting changes in the depths of the ocean waters, will signal danger. Under no circumstances should sudden low tides be ignored. In such a situation, you need to act very quickly.

If tremors occur or there is a warning of an approaching tsunami, you must:

• collect all valuables, warn as many people as possible about the danger, and quickly leave the territory;
• hide from giant waves in the mountains or areas located far from the coast;
• pay attention to signs showing the shortest route to higher ground;
• The first wave may be small, so you need to stay in a safe place for about two hours until there is complete calm.

After the devastating tsunami of 2004, the government reviewed the safety system, and today the risk of hazardous events has been reduced.

On December 26, 2004, an undersea earthquake in the Indian Ocean with a magnitude of about 9.0 (the third most powerful ever recorded) caused a catastrophic tsunami. The quake released energy comparable to the 23,000 atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima, according to the US Geological Survey. It had the greatest power in the last 40 years. The effects of the 2004 tsunami on Phuket were devastating.
A tsunami is actually a series of waves that rush forward at a speed jet plane, while some waves can be up to 30 meters high. The 2004 tsunami hit Phuket very badly. Indonesia was hit the hardest, but high waves reached the shores of Sri Lanka, India and Thailand. As a result, more than 230 thousand people died, and millions of survivors were left homeless. The tsunami even reached the shores East Africa, which also killed several people and caused significant damage to property.
In Thailand, the 2004 tsunami affected the entire Andaman coast, including Phuket and Khao Lak, which were the worst hit. The death toll in Khao Lak is estimated at more than 4,000 people, but some estimates put the death toll in the area as high as 10,000. The fact is that due to an inaccurate census and confusion in the days after the tsunami, the true numbers remained unknown.
How many people died in the 2004 tsunami in Phuket? The death toll in Phuket is estimated at around 1,000 people, although various sources give figures ranging from 900 to 2,000 people. Why did such a popular resort area have a lower death toll during the 2004 tsunami than the less popular Khao Lak? Most likely, this is explained by the presence of multi-storey hotels in Phuket, in which many people escaped. In Khao Lak, hotels at that time consisted mainly of low bungalows that could not withstand the angry waters.

Which beaches were affected by the tsunami in Phuket

Wave height of the 2004 tsunami in Phuket

How those killed in the tsunami were buried in Phuket

Phuket after the 2004 tsunami

As the waters receded, Phuket and Phang Nga province used almost all of the region's elephants to move heavy loads and clear roads. These animals were of great help in finding survivors and dead.
The economic impact of the 2004 tsunami on Phuket was significant. Tourism, which was one of the main sources of income for the island, was hit the hardest, as most hotels were destroyed or seriously damaged. The fishing industry was also hit hard by the loss of fishing vessels, trawlers, and gear, most of which fishermen could not afford to replace. In addition, many fishermen lost their homes. But it was not all troubles for the fishing industry, as the tsunami destroyed many piers and fish processing facilities. Fishermen who were able to start working again faced the following problem - local traders refused to buy fish because local population believed that the caught fish fed on the human flesh of victims who were carried out to sea by the tsunami. For local residents this was a spiritual problem, although possible problems health was also a concern. Since local residents stopped consuming fish caught near Phuket, many traders began to buy fish caught in the Gulf of Thailand or imported from Vietnam, Malaysia or other countries.
Although Phuket was one of the worst hit areas in 2004, the island recovered quite quickly from the disaster. According to initial estimates, the restoration of this popular tourist area it was supposed to drag on for ten years, but after a year there were almost no traces of the tsunami left on the island. For example, in Patong, 6 months after the disaster, only a few “scars” could be noticed.
Today, being in Phuket, you can hardly imagine that just a few years ago this island experienced a devastating tsunami. Only the Evacuation Route signs remind of the 2004 tragedy.

Monument to Tsunami Victims in Phuket

Another reminder of this tragedy is the monument to the victims of the tsunami, which is erected on Kamala Beach. This monument was built to commemorate the Tsunami Day that devastated the west coast of Phuket in 2004. The Phuket Tsunami Monument is located opposite the Print Kamala Resort, near the center of Kamala Beach. The monument is a metal sculpture called "The Heart of the Universe". Every year on the anniversary of the tsunami, ceremonies are held here with prayers and wreath-laying.

Probability of tsunami in Phuket

Where in Phuket to escape the tsunami

Films about the tsunami in Phuket

The pre-New Year bustle of 2004 was overshadowed by a terrible disaster - the tsunami in Thailand, which claimed the lives of thousands of people and became the deadliest and most destructive in modern history. The cause of this tragedy was a powerful underwater earthquake that occurred on December 26 at the deep bottom of the Indian Ocean.

According to experts, the magnitude of the tremors ranged from 9.0 to 9.3 on the local Richter scale, which led to the formation huge waves, which in a short time brought enormous and irreparable damage, troubles and suffering, deprivation and the bitterness of loss.

2004 Thailand Tsunami

Day on West coast and the nearby islands began as usual, many people were rushing to work, vacationers were basking on the beaches in the morning rays of the sun, and no one could even think about the impending mortal threat. Before the terrible tsunami in Thailand in 2004, this phenomenon was extremely rare in these parts, which is probably why extreme carelessness and ignorance played a fatal role in this tragedy.

The epicenter of the earthquake was located near the island of Sumatra; at 7:58 a.m. local time, two tectonic plates – Indian and Burmese – collided, resulting in a displacement of one of them by 18 meters.

A sharp change in the position of the 1200-kilometer platform caused a huge drop in the huge volume of water masses. In just a few minutes, there was a critical rise in the water level to the western part of the plate fault, which led to tragic consequences and caused the 2004 tsunami in Thailand.

Catastrophe

Despite the powerful underwater tremors, the earthquake was practically not felt on land. Only an hour later the first signs of trouble began to appear: birds flew away screaming, animals hid and also sought to move away from the shore, the sound of the surf began to subside, and the water began to quickly recede from the beaches, revealing the seabed.

Instead of being wary, many vacationers rushed to the liberated areas to replenish their collections of shells and collect fish. No one even noticed the high wave that appeared on the horizon, since, without a white cap, it was practically invisible against the background of the sea surface.

A tsunami generated by vertical shocks of the ocean floor has one peculiarity. Passing through deep-sea areas, this wave looks like harmless small tubercles, which at the same time rush with very high speed. Approaching the shore, it begins to slow down sharply, forming a huge wall of water with powerful energy potential.

1100 km continental plate has moved forward by as much as 18 meters

A similar tsunami occurred in Phuket in 2004 and on the coast of Thailand. With a wild howl and growl of a wounded predator, thousands of tons of water suddenly fell on the coastal land and rushed with crazy speed to destroy and break everything in their path.

The energy of the water was so great that in some places the ocean deepened into the land up to several kilometers. In Patong, at the moment of impact of a relatively “small” wave of 3-5 meters, a speed of about 500 km per hour was recorded.

When the forces of the elements were exhausted, the water stopped, but after a short period of time, with no less swiftness, it rushed back. And now, for the people who were escaping, in addition to the frenzied water currents, the danger was posed by everything that the wave carried back to the sea. Trees, pieces of metal structures, concrete, vehicles, furniture - all of these presented deadly traps for the few survivors.

Today on the Internet you can find eyewitness videos about the 2004 tsunami in Thailand, the footage of which shows all the horror and hopelessness of the rampant natural disaster.

Consequences

After the deadly wave subsided, a sad and depressing picture appeared before the eyes of the survivors. It seemed that nuclear military tests had taken place on the site of the recently prosperous resort, which wiped out almost all buildings near the shore from the face of the earth. Large coastal hotels were dilapidated skeletons of iron structures, furniture and interior items turned into heaps of small chips. The streets were filled with piles of rubbish made up of wood and concrete debris, broken glass, mangled vehicles, poles with downed wires and, worst of all, human and animal bodies.

Shock and horror did not allow the survivors to come to their senses, comprehend the disaster that had happened, and leave after the first water left. scary place. Perhaps then there would have been fewer victims, since the rogue wave returned two more times. As a result of this triple blow, the death toll from the tsunami in Thailand alone numbered in the tens of thousands, and in all of Indonesia in the hundreds.

Mitigation measures

When the water finally receded, local authorities quickly joined the fight to eliminate the destructive effects of the tsunami. Special camps were quickly organized for victims of the disaster, where psychological and material assistance, drinking water and food were provided. Hundreds of mobilized military personnel, volunteers and local police kept order, helped search for survivors and clear away the rubble.

The hot climate and destroyed sewage system could provoke outbreaks of various infections, so the first priority was to locate the dead, possible identification and burial. Many countries contributed to solving this problem by sending everything necessary to eliminate the consequences: people, equipment, materials and humanitarian aid.

Thailand recovered relatively quickly and recovered from the devastating disaster. It has now joined an international system designed to detect deadly waves early and mitigate their effects in the Indian Ocean. It was successfully tested during a tsunami threat in 2012, then all warning systems were activated and a complete evacuation of tourists and the population was carried out.

Now tourism in Thailand is thriving, tourists from all over the world, forgetting about fears of the tsunami, go on vacation to this amazing country, only posters with rules of conduct in case of natural disasters remind us of the 2004 tragedy.

Video, Thailand, Tsunami Thailand (Koh Phi Phi) - 12/26/2004

Eyewitness video. Tsunami in Thailand December 26, 2004.

An undersea earthquake in the Indian Ocean, which occurred on December 26, 2004 at 00:58:53 UTC (07:58:53 local time), caused a tsunami, which was recognized as the deadliest natural disaster in modern history. The magnitude of the earthquake was, according to various estimates, from 9.1 to 9.3. This is the third most powerful earthquake on record.

The epicenter of the earthquake was in the Indian Ocean, north of the island of Simeulue, located off the northwestern coast of the island of Sumatra (Indonesia). The tsunami reached the shores of Indonesia, Sri Lanka, southern India, Thailand and other countries. The height of the waves exceeded 15 meters. The tsunami caused enormous destruction and a huge number of deaths, even in Port Elizabeth, South Africa, 6900 km from the epicenter.

According to various estimates, from 225 thousand to 300 thousand people died. According to the United States Geological Survey (USGS), the death toll is 227,898. The true death toll is unlikely to ever be known, as many people were swept into the ocean.

Tsunami propagation across the Indian Ocean

The earthquake north of Simeulue Island was initially estimated at magnitude 6.8 on the Richter scale. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center (PTWC) assessed it at magnitude 8.5 immediately after the event. The moment magnitude, which more accurately estimates earthquakes of this magnitude, was 8.1. Upon further analysis, this score was gradually increased to 9.0. In February 2005, the strength of the earthquake was estimated at 9.3 magnitude. The PTWC accepted this new estimate, while the USGS estimates the magnitude of the earthquake to be 9.1 magnitude.

Since 1900, recorded earthquakes of comparable magnitude have been the 1960 Great Chile earthquake (magnitude 9.3-9.5), the 1964 Great Alaskan Ice Bay earthquake (9.2), the 1952 south coast Kamchatka (9.0). Each of these earthquakes also resulted in a tsunami (in the Pacific Ocean), but the death toll was significantly lower (several thousand people at most) - perhaps because the population density in those areas is quite low, and the distances to more populated coasts big enough.

The hypocenter of the main earthquake was located at coordinates 3.316° N. latitude, 95.854° east. (3° 19′ N, 95° 51.24′ E), at a distance of about 160 km west of Sumatra, at a depth of 30 km from sea level (initially reported 10 km from sea level ). It is the western end of the Pacific Ring of Fire, an earthquake belt that accounts for up to 81% of the world's largest earthquakes.

The earthquake was unusually large in a geographical sense. About 1200 km (according to some estimates - 1600 km) of rock shifted over a distance of 15 m along the subduction zone, causing the Indian plate to move under the Burma plate. The shift was not one-time, but was divided into two phases within a few minutes. Seismographic data suggests that the first phase formed a fault measuring approximately 400 km by 100 km, located at approximately 30 km above sea level. The fault formed at a speed of about 2 km/s, starting from the shore of Ase towards the northwest for about 100 seconds. There was then a pause of about 100 seconds, after which the rift continued to form north towards the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

The Indian Plate is part of the larger Indo-Australian Plate that lines the Indian Ocean and Bay of Bengal, moving northeast at an average rate of 6 cm per year. The Indian Plate touches the Burma Plate, which is considered part of the larger Eurasian Plate, forming the Sunda Trench. At this point, the Indian Plate is being pushed under the Burma Plate, on which the Nicobar Islands are located. Andaman Islands and the northern part of the island of Sumatra. The Indian Plate gradually slides deeper and deeper beneath the Burma Plate until increasing temperatures and increasing pressure turn the subducted edge of the Indian Plate into magma, which is eventually ejected upward through volcanoes (the so-called Volcanic Arc). This process is interrupted by the interlocking of the plates for several centuries until the build-up of pressure results in a major earthquake and tsunami.

With the sharp movement of tectonic plates, the seabed also rises by several meters, thereby giving rise to destructive tsunami waves. Tsunamis do not have a point center as such, as is erroneously assumed from illustrations of their propagation. Tsunamis propagate radially from the entire fault, which is approximately 1200 km long.

BANGKOK, December 26 - RIA Novosti, Evgeny Belenky. Ten years ago, on December 26, 2004, six thousand people died at resorts southern Thailand as a result of a devastating tsunami that swept along the Indian Ocean coastline. More than half of the dead were foreign tourists, among them were Russians. A tourist paradise in southern Thailand turned into absolute hell within one hour.

Phuket

Having arrived in Phuket the night before and spent the night searching for surviving Russians in hospitals in Phuket and five surrounding provinces, on the morning of December 27, driving along a relatively intact section of the embankment in the Patong Beach area, we saw for the first time in daylight and realized the scale of the destruction. Completely collapsed and dilapidated houses of the first line, cars half sticking out of the windows of the third floor, and a small car wrapped around a cracked concrete pillar, so that the front bumper was in contact with the rear. There were no more bodies of the dead on the streets, there was only debris from wooden buildings demolished by the wave and mangled cars and motorcycles, and this made the picture even worse: imagination filled in what was missing. In Patong, the wave was “only” three to five meters high, but its speed at the moment of impact reached 500 kilometers per hour. On the embankment there were palm trees, bare as lampposts, not broken by the wave, but completely devoid of leaves.

Phuket was less affected than the mainland coast of neighboring Phanga province or Phi Phi island in Krabi province, and had fewer fatalities. But it was in Phuket on the day of the tsunami that there was greatest number Russians, more than 900 people, and two of them died.

On December 28, in one of the hospitals in Phuket, the body of a young woman from Moscow was found, who came to rest with her four-year-old son and on the day of the tsunami refused an excursion deep into the island, going with the child to the beach. Her son's body was discovered in another hospital the next day, and together with visiting relatives of the victims, Russian diplomats and local doctors made a visual identification, then confirmed by identification from dental records. On the island of Phuket itself, no more Russians died.

Phuket became the center for survivors and the identification center for all surrounding provinces. On the very first day, the Thai authorities provided a plane for the flight from Bangkok to Phuket for consular workers of those countries whose citizens were in the disaster zone. On the third day after the tsunami, the evacuation mechanism was already in full swing: a transit camp for foreign victims in Phuket, free flights to Bangkok, refugee camps in Bangkok, from which tsunami victims were sent home.

All the bodies of people who died both on the island itself and in neighboring provinces were brought to Phuket. There was no space in the morgues, so the bodies were laid in plastic bags and sheets on the floor of hospital basements, where there were such, or on the ground in the courtyards of hospitals and on the territory of several Buddhist monasteries. Only before the New Year, the first 12 refrigerated containers arrived in Phuket, but even a week later, when there were already several dozen of them, there were still not enough containers, and a decision was made to temporarily bury the unidentified bodies. Most of the bodies found after several days in the water could not be visually identified. For several years after the tsunami, an operation was underway to identify the victims by DNA.

There was a lot of confusion: for example, Russian diplomats had to defend the body of a Muscovite who died in Phuket, which their colleagues from Italy suddenly began to lay claim to: one elderly Italian recognized her as his daughter from a photograph. The body had already been identified by the Russian woman’s relatives and identified by doctors, so the Russian side invited the Italian side to carry out a DNA comparison. The analysis was done in Rome and showed a negative result, after which Italian diplomats were forced to apologize to the Russians. Then the German rescuers working with the refrigerators introduced their own body numbering system, “cancelling” the previous one used by the Israeli rescuers who had worked before them, and they had to open the refrigerators one by one to find the identified bodies that had to be prepared for shipment to their homeland. It turned out, however, that the neat Germans had nevertheless compiled a list of matching numbers, but for some reason they decided to stick it not to the outside, but to the inside of the door of one of the 18 containers standing nearby.

Phanga Province

In the Khao Lak area of ​​Phanga province on the mainland, a forty-minute drive from Phuket, a strip of beach lined with several five-star hotels looked like something out of a crazy surrealist's dream on the second day after the tsunami. There was no asphalt road that previously led from the highway to the Sofitel Khao Lak Hotel. In its place was a broken and washed out dirt road. Along it, mattresses, mini-fridges from rooms, and safes hung on the branches of completely bare trees. The hotel's concrete and brick buildings were intact, but they looked as if some giant rabid cat had torn off the paint and plaster from the first to the third floor with its claws. The piles on which the buildings were built were exposed, and underneath them darkened eerie, almost black water. Paths made of plywood boards were laid between the hulls, along which the Thai sailors leading the rescue operation moved. A wave 15 meters high here traveled almost two kilometers deep into the shore.

“We collected most of the bodies, but not all the bodies have been removed here yet, some are under buildings, some are under plywood shields. We had to put these shields on the dead in some places so that we could collect and transport other bodies, from the beach and from the pools ", said the officer commanding the operation.

It was at Sofitel that seven out of ten died Russian victims tsunami. A family of three from Buryatia, a girl guide from St. Petersburg who came to discuss their vacation program with them, a young couple with a daughter from Moscow.

Another Russian died at the nearby Grand Diamond Hotel. He walked out of the hotel building onto the beach, while his family stayed in the room and survived.

Survivors at the Sofitel told how powerful whirlpools tore people out of rooms on the first floor through window panes broken by the first blow of the wave. An elderly woman from Kazakhstan and her one-year-old grandson survived because the bed they were lying on rose to the ceiling. The grandmother and grandson took turns breathing air from the air pocket that had formed there. within fifteen minutes. Another grandson of this woman, an eleven-year-old boy, took the blow of a wave at the door of his hotel building - he returned from the beach to get swimming goggles - also survived, although he broke his ribs on the statues that stood between the buildings. His last memory before the impact was of his father and mother running along the beach from the wave towards him, already knowing that they would not have time to escape, and putting all their strength into warning their son: “Run, run up!”

1,500 Russians survived the tsunami in southern Thailand

The emergency headquarters at the Russian embassy in Bangkok worked around the clock, receiving 2,000 phone calls per day. The first list compiled by the headquarters included one and a half thousand Russians, presumably located in the provinces that suffered the disaster.

All subsequent days, until January 6, when this list was “closed,” a search was carried out for everyone mentioned in it individually. Names were crossed out one by one only after double-checking confirmation that the person was alive and well. Most of the names were “closed” by the Bangkok headquarters, which received calls from relatives and the wanted persons themselves. The rest were searched for and found by Russian diplomats who flew to Phuket on the evening of December 26 - in hospitals, in hotels, in evacuee camps.

From the first day in Phuket, they were helped by volunteers - employees of travel agencies, Russians living in different parts of Thailand, the mother of one of the Russian citizens who disappeared in Sofitel, who came to look for her son and did not want to sit back and wait for news, journalists from Russian TV channels and newspapers who came to cover the consequences of the tsunami.

Gradually the lists melted away, people were found, and at the same time another list began to be drawn up - for evacuation flights of the Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations. The very first flight that brought me to Phuket before the New Year drinking water in bottles (there was a chronic shortage of it on the island), Russian diplomats managed to send home more than 80 Russians and citizens of neighboring countries, including Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania.

There was a third list: those who were considered missing, but due to the circumstances of their location at the time of the tsunami and eyewitness testimony, most likely died. On January 8, this list became final. Ten names left. Identification of the dead took years. The list has not changed, only the people named in it have today ceased to be considered missing and have become officially dead. Here are their names: Oksana Lipuntsova and her four-year-old son Artem, Sergei Borgolova, Natalya Borgolova, their son Vladislav Borgolova, Maria Gabunia, Olga Gabunia, Evgeniy Mikhalenkov, Alexandra Gulida, Vitaly Kimstach.