Tragedy touches Hawai'i as many seek word on families
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Tsunami death toll rising |
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SE Asia disaster a wake-up call here |
| • | Hawai'i center had no way to sound alert |
| • | Relief efforts start in Hawai'i |
By Peter Boylan
Advertiser Staff Writer
Kajohnsak Jongjaroenchockchai was walking his dog on the beach in Phuket, Thailand, Sunday morning when the water near the shore rushed out to sea, his sister said yesterday.
Jeff Widener • The Honolulu Advertiser
Jongjaroenchockchai, who walks on the beach every morning, immediately sensed something was wrong and started to sprint for home, said his sister, Nontnuch, who lives in Honolulu. As he frantically tried to get his kids and dog into his car, he called his wife, who works at the Sheraton Hotel in Phuket, and told her to run away from the ocean and into the hills, his sister said.
Ph.D. candidates Muhamad Ali, of Indonesia, and Vijayan Munusamy, of Malaysia, spoke of the devastation back home.
Nontnuch Jongjaroenchockchai said her brother called her from his cell phone at 3 p.m. Hawai'i time on Saturday, once he had driven his family to safety on high ground. He told her he could see the water surging in, she said.
"My brother's house is nearly destroyed," she said yesterday from her house in Mililani. "I have family in Phuket but everybody says they are OK. My mom's house is far away from the beach so nothing happened to it."
Stories such as this one played out all over Asia yesterday as survivors, families and friends struggled to re-connect after a massive undersea earthquake triggered a series of tsunamis that struck the coastlines of 10 countries in South Asia and Africa, killing tens of thousands.
The impact of the disaster hit close to home, and highlighted the ties between Hawai'i and South Asian countries.
Local resident Kusuma Cooray, honorary consul for Sri Lanka, said she hasn't heard from her sister or brother, who live in her family home 200 yards from the ocean in Moratuwa, eight miles south of Colombo. She said she couldn't sleep Sunday night and has had a hard time comprehending the magnitude of the tragedy.
"I am so heartbroken," said Cooray. "It's not only for my family, it's for so many Sri Lankans and also a lot of tourists are there to enjoy the Christmas season and enjoy our country and then this."
The hard-hit southwest coast of Sri Lanka is a popular tourist destination for Westerners and a sizeable cog in the nation's economy. More than 72 foreign tourists were killed by the tsunamis, including two Americans.
At a news conference yesterday, several East-West Center students expressed their shock and sadness.
Muhamad Ali, a Ph.D. candidate in history from Jakarta, Indonesia, said he had hoped to do research next year in the badly damaged region of Aceh. He said he cried when he read news of the tragedy on his computer Sunday.
"Four thousand people died," he said, struggling to hold back tears. "I know they are not from Jakarta but they are my countrymen."
Subir Kole, a Ph.D. candidate in political science from Calcutta, India, said the most painful thing is that the tragedy hit poorer countries.
"In the developed countries, there are advanced systems for warnings but in developing countries you don't have these systems," he said. "It's really shocking in that way."
At the Thai temple in Pearl City yesterday, the lead monk was putting out a call to members to come and pray and make donations to help victims in Thailand, said Manop Chandsubin, a temple member.
Reach Peter Boylan at 535-8110 or pboylan@honoluluadvertiser.com.
