7 hours ago Mourners place candles on the beach at Boxing Day tsunami memorial 20 years after deadly giant wave swept Indian Ocean and killed 230,000

At one particularly large site in Thailand's southern fishing town of Ban Nam Khem, a large illuminated sign read '20 Tsunami' was surrounded by flames after huge numbers of people flocked to pay homage

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13 hours ago 'Boxing Day Tsunami 20 years ago today saw me lose my two sons and fiancé in an instant'

Sharon Howard has returned to Thailand to mark the 20th anniversary of losing her six-year-old son Taylor, his eight-year-old brother Mason and fiancé, David Page, 44

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14 hours ago The day the earth shook: Twenty years on, the videos and images that encapsulate the ferocity and terror of the Boxing Day tsunami

For ten straight minutes, the entire planet shook violently, sending seismic waves across itself that changed the world for the worse.

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14 hours ago The worst tsunami in history, hour by hour: How 230,000 people were wiped out in a matter of hours. DEEP DIVE reveals how monster 50m waves obliterated everything in their path

On this day 20 years ago, an undersea earthquake struck off the coast of Indonesia. Measuring 9.1 in magnitude, the violent tremor was the third strongest to ever rock the planet.

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16 hours ago 20 years since the Boxing Day tsunami: How Sri Lanka’s Yala National Park has recovered – and thrived

Two decades after the 2004 tsunami devastated coastal regions around Asia, Tamara Davison travels to one of the areas that was worst hit to speak to the people who were impacted and learn how tourism has made a comeback

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17 hours ago Ceremonies held across Asia to mark 20 years since the Boxing Day tsunami

The waves, which towered as high as 30 metres, killed more than 220,000 people in 15 countries in the deadliest tsunami in history Ceremonies were being held in countries across Asia on Thursday to remember the more than 220,000 people who were killed two decades ago in the Indian Ocean Tsunami, the most deadly tsunami in history.On 26 December 2004, a 9.1-magnitude earthquake struck Indonesia’s Sumatra island, triggering huge waves that slammed into coastal communities across the Indian ocean. The waves, which towered as high as 30 metres, killed 227,899 people across 15 countries. Continue reading...

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21 hours ago Indian Ocean tsunami: how survivors found love after Boxing Day disaster

A rise in the number of remarriages and a baby boom in the years since 2004 gave hope to survivors and helped them cope with the tragedyIt was Mahyuddin’s mother who had pestered him to go out on Sunday morning, 20 years ago. Dozens of relatives were visiting their small coastal village in Indonesia for a wedding party, but a powerful earthquake had struck just before 8am. Buildings in some areas had collapsed. He should go and check on his employer’s office to see if they needed help, his mother said.As he drove into town, he found chaos and panic. The road was heavy with traffic: cars, motorbikes, trucks, all rushing in the same direction. People were running, shouting that water was coming. Continue reading...

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24 hours ago Twenty years after Boxing Day tsunami killed more than 270,000 people in 13 countries, how Mail readers have helped child victims turn trauma into triumph

The CWW Kannangara School in Galle, Sri Lanka, was torn to pieces by the terrifying 20ft wave that raged inland at speeds of up to 800mph on Boxing Day 2004.

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32 hours ago ‘You learn to live with the pain’: 20 years after the Boxing Day tsunami, Australian couple remember son Paul

Joe and Evanna Giardina treasure memories of the affectionate 16-year-old they dubbed the ‘love machine’, who died in the 2004 disasterAt first, there seemed nothing to be afraid of. Joe Giardina, his wife, Evanna, and their 16-year-old son, Paul, were taking in the picture-perfect waters of Patong bay as they ate breakfast in their Phuket beachfront hotel on Boxing Day morning in 2004.“We were admiring the view and all of a sudden the water disappeared,” says Giardina, 67, speaking from his home in Rosanna, Victoria. The water level had dropped so quickly that fish were floundering on the exposed seabed. But rather than sensing any threat, curious onlookers made their way to the beach. “The locals thought, ‘This is fantastic.’ They were running around picking the fish up.” Continue reading...

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