It’s been 20 years since the devastating Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami, which claimed tens of thousands of lives. The ABC has returned to some of the hardest-hit areas for a documentary on their recovery. Lauren Day reports from Phuket, Thailand. Please be aware, this story contains some distressing images.
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00:00Watanasa Tiruchot was just an average 12-year-old playing at a game centre on the morning his
00:11life changed forever.
00:13And I just walk out and see the people, what happened.
00:18And some of the people, they said the wave from the sea, they came up to the land like
00:27a big wave.
00:30After days of desperate searching, he learned that that big wave had taken his family and
00:35his home.
00:37Just one minute or two minutes changed my life from tsunami.
00:43No home, no one to look after, the same to other children, that is really difficult.
00:50With no family to take care of him, he stayed in a tent with dozens of other children left
00:55orphaned by the tsunami.
00:57That's when Australian forensic investigations expert Peter Baines stepped in.
01:01And I realised I couldn't change what had happened for them, but I felt I could change
01:06what happened next.
01:08What was meant to be a temporary shelter for 70 tsunami children turned into a permanent
01:12organisation.
01:13Now, Watana leads that very orphanage that became his home and family all those years
01:19ago, looking after kids just like him.
01:23I just would like them to have a good life, good education.
01:28When they leave from here, they should help each other, like what I give to them, and
01:35they can give to each other when they leave from here and stay like a happy family.
01:42The tsunami was the most devastating natural disaster in Thailand's history.
01:47It ravaged hundreds of coastal villages, completely wiping out 47, including popular tourist
01:52destinations.
01:54It destroyed and forever changed countless lives.
01:57I think the only thing that I have that remained consistent from my life prior to the Boxing
02:03Day tsunami was the fact that I've got three kids.
02:08Everything else in my life would change, and it was a significant change, but overwhelmingly
02:14a positive impact.
02:15Two decades on, it's clear the tsunami has left a permanent mark on this place and all
02:21those who lived through it.
02:22But this is not just a story of tragedy and loss, but of survival, healing and lifelong
02:29connections.