Hundreds of thousands of people marked 20 years since the 2004 tsunami, which killed 230,000 people, with silence ceremonies and prayers in affected countries, writes Reuters.
20 years after the devastating Indian Ocean tsunami, survivors and families of the victims attended commemoration ceremonies in several countries in South and Southeast Asia.
The disasters caused by the giant waves, triggered by a 9.1 magnitude earthquake off the coast of Aceh province in Indonesia, have killed an estimated 230,000 people in 14 countries.
“The sea took my daughter. I can’t go near her”
In Indonesia, which accounted for more than half of the total number of deaths, hundreds of people visited mass graves in the village of Ulee Lheue, scattering flower petals and praying for the lost. Many of the participants do not know if their relatives are buried there, as many bodies have not been identified.
In Sri Lanka, the moment was marked by a two-minute silence at the Tsunami Memorial in Galle, and in India, residents of Tamil Nadu lit candles and held prayers.
In Thailand, religious ceremonies were held in Phang Nga province, one of the worst-hit areas, where 5,400 people, including many foreign tourists, lost their lives. At the Tsunami Wall memorial, residents paid their respects to the missing.
“The sea took my daughter. I can’t go near her, not even touch my feet in the sand,” said Urai Sirisuk, from Phang Nga, who lost her 4-year-old daughter in the disaster.
Source: www.descopera.ro
