By FAKHURRADZIE GADE,
AP
Posted: 2007-12-26 10:10:49
CALANG, Indonesia (AP) - Survivors prayed at mosques and mass
graves Wednesday to mark the third anniversary of the devastating
Asian tsunami, while hundreds fled beaches as part of a drill to
test an alert network established since the disaster.
The waves on Dec. 26, 2004, spawned by the mightiest earthquake
in 40 years, killed around 230,000 people in 12 Indian Ocean
nations, just under half of them in the Indonesian province of Aceh
on Sumatra island.
Coastal communities in Sri Lanka and India lost some 45,000
people between them. The waves also crashed into tourist resorts in
southern Thailand, killing more than 5,000, half of them foreign
vacationers.
The disaster overwhelmed authorities in Aceh, where bodies
littered devastated neighborhoods for weeks. Most victims were
never formally identified and tens of thousands were buried in mass
graves.
Nur Aini lost her husband and one of her two children to the
waves.
"We are praying for them today even though I don't know where
they are buried," she said. "My remaining child still calls out
for his father."
The disaster, one of the deadliest of the modern age, promoted a
global outpouring of sympathy, with governments, individuals and
corporations pledging more than $13 billion in aid.
In Aceh, more than 100,000 houses, scores of schools and
hospitals and miles of roads have been rebuilt. Whilst there have
been complaints of corruption and waste, most people involved in
the reconstruction process say it has gone well.
"I hope we can turn a new page now and leave sadness, cries and
tears behind us," Aceh Governor Irwandi Yusuf told hundreds
gathered at a prayer ceremony in the hard-hit town of Calang. "I
hope one day we can pay our debt to the world by becoming a donor
to other countries hit by disasters."
Thailand held ceremonies throughout the day along its white-sand
southern beaches.
Survivors and families of victims were invited to Phuket's
Patong beach, a popular strip of hotels and restaurants, to lay
flowers in the sand. Chanting Buddhist monks were to light incense
and lead an ecumenical prayer service.
The tsunami drill in Indonesia took place on the western tip of
Java island close to the capital, Jakarta. It was attended by
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and other top government
officials.
Those taking part ran or walked around a mile inland after the
siren sounded.
Foreign governments are helping Indonesia establish a nationwide
network of buoys and high-tech communications equipment that would
give coastal communities warning if there is a tsunami. The network
is up and running in several regions of the country, but 20 more
buoys are due to be launched in 2008.
Indonesia is frequently rocked by powerful earthquakes because
of its position on the "Pacific Ring of Fire," an arc of
volcanoes and tectonic fault lines encircling the Pacific Basin.
The observances came amid widespread flooding in parts of
Indonesia. Heavy rains triggered landslides that killed dozens of
people on Java island, though far from the scene of the tsunami and
Wednesday's drill.
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