In the hardest hit area of Khao Lak in the southern Phang-nga province, many coastal villages and resorts were completely swept away. Those left standing remained as ghostly reminders of the waves’ force for months.

“The local governor planned the five-year ceremony. Many tourists are coming and Thai people also. In the morning, we will have the Buddhist ceremony. Rice will be given to the monks in Takuapa district and we will have the ceremony in the evening,” said Chuleeporn Sermsirinamon, the president of the Tourist Association of Phang-nga province.

Hoteliers at the resorts that have mainly recovered from the impact of the tsunami, say that many guests this year are people who were in Thailand on the fateful morning. They have come back to remember those lost to the waves.

Valuable lessons in disaster management

Andy McElroy, the regional programme coordinator for the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies said that the unprecedented disaster had provided valuable lessons in how to manage such natural catastrophes.

“The other “opportunity”, he said, “was the incredible engagement not just of governments but of individuals around the world who gave money, who gave clothes and who took an interest in the tsunami. It’s not just a question of responding to emergencies it’s a question how we respond.”

However, the response was not always appropriate. Along the beach areas in Khao Lak, where whole villages were swept away, there are still legal fights going on over land between local communities and developers.

Post-trauma suffering among children

Moreover, there is still a lot of suffering. Associate Professor of Psychiatry at Siriraj Hospital in Bangkok, Panom Ketuman, said that studies on Thai children in Khao Lak had found that up to 100 children in the community were still reeling from the impact of the trauma, and had the “avoidance behaviour you see in Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.”

“You will see the children will have a fear of some places or situations, such as on the beach or in the house, which was destroyed by the tsunami. Some children still have symptoms of phobic avoidance.”

Professor Panom added that some schools in Khao Lak were trying to help these children, who had now become teenagers with often aggressive behaviour.

Inadequate early warning system

There still seems to be a lack of preparedness for future similar disasters. The early warning system along the Thai coastline remains inadequate, said former meteorologist Samith Dharmasaroja.

“Thailand has been upgrading the warning system but somehow there is a lack of interest, a lack of participation on the part of the government. I’m not sure that the disaster warning centre of Thailand has enough efficiency to perform its function up to standard. That’s the problem I worry about.”

Under the heat of Thailand’s dry season temperate sun thousands of people on Saturday will gather in shared thoughts of losses and a tragedy that has cast such a deep pall over so many lives

Author: Ron Corben
Editor: Anne Thomas