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maintenance of the coastal vegetation have become a priority in the reconstruction of the landscape. Khao Lak experienced the highest run-up of any tsunami wave height of any location outside
Sumatra. Due to the topography of the seabed, coastline and reefs offshore, the tsunami waves piled on top of themselves and in doing so, create the infamous 'disappearing sea effect' which enticed many tourists to their deaths. This effect is also known as the tsunami drawback.
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397:. Thailand has a liberalised, flexible and robust economy, which has shown powers of rapid recuperation after previous setbacks. The sectors most badly damaged were tourism and fishing. The beach resorts along the Andaman Sea coast were extensively damaged. Many Thai-owned hotels and other small businesses were ruined, and the Thai government provided large amounts of capital to enable the recovery of the private sector.
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to 1,300. The number of deaths whose nationality has not been established has risen correspondingly, from less than 200 to about 2,100. This is due to increasing doubts about the reliability of the classification on the basis of visual identification of badly decomposed bodies into "Thai" and "foreign" categories. All bodies of unknown origin will now be DNA tested to determine their ethnic origin.
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828:. The "total deaths" and "total injured" categories include dead and injured persons whose nationality is not given or has not been established. The number of "foreign injured" has been reduced by evacuations of foreign nationals. Thai sources acknowledge that the great majority of those listed as "missing" are in fact dead, and that a large majority of these are foreigners.
321:, a famous diving site located about 70 km from Phang Nga town in Pha Nga province or 13 km from central Khao Lak. The sea around these islands when the tsunami struck was reported to have strong currents and divers underwater felt strong turbulence. Some flooding also occurred inland, though no casualties were reported.
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Since the 2004 tsunami, an early-warning system has been installed along the affected coastline. In April 2012, it received its most recent test following an earthquake off the coast of
Sumatra. Audible warning sirens alerted the local population to the possibility of a tsunami roughly 2 hours before
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in the north-east, where many workers in the tourism industry come from. By 12 January some of the affected resorts in the south had re-opened, and the Thai government had begun an advertising campaign to bring visitors back to the area as quickly as possible, though everyone knew it would be quite a
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coastal landscape was destroyed by the tsunami. Some replanting programmes have been initiated and a great deal has been accomplished in the rejuvenation of surrounding foliage. Studies suggesting that coastal vegetation may have helped buffer the effects of the waves have ensured that replanting and
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on 10 January suggested that some of the figures in this table may be seriously misleading. According to this article, the estimated number of deaths among Thai nationals has been reduced from about 2,500 to about 1,800, and the estimated number of deaths among foreigners has been reduced from 2,500
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The fishing industry was damaged by the extensive destruction of fishing boats and tackle, which individual fishing families could not afford to replace, particularly since many lost their homes as well. According to one report, more than 500 fishing boats and ten trawlers were destroyed, as well as
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In the long run the tsunami disaster brought considerable benefits to
Thailand, especially the southern tourist areas. European governments have pledged large sums of money to rebuild infrastructure and to fund new schools and orphanages for the Thai communities affected, as a gesture of thanks for
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of ignoring warnings in 1998 of the possible risk of a tsunami affecting
Thailand. His allegations were supported by the former head of the Meteorological Department, Smith Tumsaroch. Democratic Party politicians said that Smith has failed to produce any evidence for his warnings at the time, and
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A further problem was the public aversion in
Thailand to eating locally caught fish, for fear that the fish have fed on human dead bodies which were swept out to sea by the tsunami. Thais found this possibility offensive both on health grounds and for religious reasons. Fish product distributors
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and his family, and Imre von Polgar, guitarist for the
Swedish rock band, The Watermelon Men. Almost four years old at the time, a young girl was swept away at Khao Lak and remained the subject of a media-covered intensive search despite being formally identified in August 2005 as a victim.
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the assistance given to their citizens by the Thai people. The destruction of many second-rate structures along the beaches provided opportunities to rebuild popular tourist areas such as Patong Beach at Phuket in a more aesthetically and environmentally suitable way.
405:. Addition of the tsunami's waves and associated debris demonstrated their weakness to shearing at the base. There were revelations about the height of these poles, too – the (up to) 10 meter waves submerged the shorter, older poles. And
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population was not documented nor recognized as legal residents. The severity of the situation in Khao Lak is probably explained by the fact, that unlike the high-rise hotels of Phuket, the village of Khao Lak only had low built
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441:, so that they could assure consumers that there was no possibility of such contamination. As a result, even those fishing families who were able to fish were unable to sell their catch. The Director-General of the
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Infrastructure in general was, predictably, severely damaged, though much has been gleaned from surveying the aftermath. Reinforced concrete power poles are normally the standard in countries with high
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on 26 December 2004. It left behind unprecedented damage and destruction in six provinces of
Thailand, impacting 407 villages, completely destroying 47 of them, including prominent tourist resorts like
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some 80 km north of Phuket was hit far worse with 3,950 confirmed deaths. However, the death toll in Khao Lak may have exceeded 4,500. Khao Lak was the coastal area of
Thailand hardest hit by the
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concrete hotels. Khao Lak also has an extensive area of flatland only a few meters above the sea level, on which most bungalows were situated. Bhumi Jensen, grandson of
Thailand's King
547:, and sister survived by fleeing to an upper story of La Flora. The area in which the patrol boat lies has been renovated and includes a museum dedicated to the events of 26 December.
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was the worst affected in terms of devastation to the local population, with around a quarter of its population of 4,200 lost to the tsunami and 80 percent of homes destroyed.
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The confidence of
European tourists in travelling to places such as Phuket also took some time to recover, which is one reason why Thailand strongly backed the installed
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512:. The final death toll was over 4,000, with local unofficial estimates topping 10,000 due to the lack of accurate government censuses and the fact that much of the
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was badly hit, with a large number of people reported dead. In Phuket, around 250 individuals, including foreign tourists, were reported deceased. Notably, the
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The force of the tsunami beached Thai navy boat 813 (Tor 813) almost 1.25 kilometres (0.78 miles) inland from Bang Niang Beach. It was on patrol, guarding
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497:, north of Phuket, was among Thailand's most severely affected areas, with significant casualties, including a considerable number of Burmese laborers.
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many piers and fish-processing facilities. Again, grants or loans from the government have been essential to enable the industry to re-equip itself.
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piping was found to perform exceptionally well: as roads crumbled, the subterranean flexible pipelines formed new contours and rarely separated.
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416:. Thousands of Thais dependent on tourism-related industries lost their jobs, not just in the south but also in the poorest part of Thailand,
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1063:"Civil Society, Network and Community Participation in Configuring Strategic Development Plan, Baan Nam Kem Community, Phang Nga Province"
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543:, a grandson of the king, as he was jet skiing in front of La Flora Resort. Despite rescue efforts, he could not be saved. His mother,
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332:, Karon, and Kata, suffered substantial damage, as did some resorts and communities along the island's southern shores.
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The economic impact of the tsunami on Thailand was considerable, though not as great as in poorer countries such as
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1085:"Model Petra Nemcova returns to Thailand to commemorate tsunami that claimed life of fiance Simon Atlee"
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on 6 February 2005, and the tsunami disaster was drawn into the election campaign. Prime Minister
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while before Thailand was in a state of normalcy, professionals guessed around ten years.
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perished in the tsunami with several members of her family. Former President of Finland
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refused to buy fish and crustaceans from Andaman Sea ports, and preferred to buy from
948:"Hundreds Of Victims Of The 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami Have Still Not Been Identified"
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309:. The disaster killed about 5,400 people in Thailand, including foreign tourists.
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estimated landfall, allowing the populace to move to higher ground inland.
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Calgaro, Emma; Pongponrat, Kannapa; Naruchaikusol, Sopon (November 2009).
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Others among the casualties were well-known Finnish musician and TV host
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328:. Almost all the major beaches on Phuket’s west coast, including Kamala,
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567:(née Attenborough) the elder daughter of the film director and actor
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some anecdotes included in this article should probably be removed.
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Sumata-Andaman Islands Earthquake and Tsunami of December 26, 2004
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361:, who survived the 2004 tsunami, and was also filmed in Khao Lak.
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Effect of the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami by country
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at 10:25 a.m., prior to the third—and strongest—tsunami wave
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Tsunami inundation at Khao Lak; the resort area is in the middle
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Usavagovitwong, Nattawut; Khwansuwan, Poon (September 2007).
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The first location where the tsunami was noticed was on the
975:"Forgotten Burmese Victims of Tsunami Rebuild Thai Resorts"
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Destination Vulnerability Assessment for Khao Lak, Thailand
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and his adult son survived by clinging to a power pole.
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98:"Effect of the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake on Thailand"
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Journal of Architectural/Planning Research and Studies
1001:"Tsunami survivors remember 'selfless help' of Thais"
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accused Thaksin of politicising the tsunami tragedy.
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Chankaew, Prapan; Sagolj, Damir (23 December 2014).
855:"15 years on, a look back at the Boxing Day tsunami"
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Photos before the destruction of Koh Phi Phi Island
89:. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.
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532:Just north of the Khao Lak area, the village of
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293:Map showing the provinces of Thailand affected
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357:is based on the true story of the family of
300:was one of the 14 countries affected by the
1030:Charlie Campbell / Khao Lak and Hong Kong.
52:Learn how and when to remove these messages
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889:. Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI).
554:Shelter built following the 2004 tsunami.
275:Learn how and when to remove this message
210:Learn how and when to remove this message
149:Learn how and when to remove this message
1158:2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami
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302:2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami
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581:Official figures as of 7 January 2005
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1042:from the original on 28 December 2014
915:Carl Strand, John Masek, ed. (2007).
324:The tsunami struck the west coast of
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896:from the original on 25 January 2020
529:was among those killed in Khao Lak.
373:Regular sea level at Kata Noi beach.
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87:adding citations to reliable sources
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1007:. 28 December 2014. Archived from
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33:This article has multiple issues.
381:Maximum recession of the sea at
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1154:Regional humanitarian situation
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508:resulting from the 26 December
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41:or discuss these issues on the
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973:Tang, Alisa (27 June 2005).
510:2004 Indian Ocean earthquake
485:The popular tourist area of
466:Democratic Party of Thailand
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239:to comply with Knowledge's
185:. The specific problem is:
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443:World Health Organization
407:high-density polyethylene
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252:may contain suggestions.
237:may need to be rewritten
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414:tsunami warning system
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458:legislative elections
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1235:Tsunamis in Thailand
1032:"The Tsunami's Wake"
569:Richard Attenborough
545:Princess Ubol Ratana
192:improve this article
181:to meet Knowledge's
83:improve this article
1095:on 28 December 2014
935:on 24 October 2013.
500:The resort area of
464:accused the former
433:ports or even from
861:. 18 December 2019
832:An article in the
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495:Phang Nga province
462:Thaksin Shinawatra
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612:Foreign injured
514:migrant Burmese
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834:Bangkok Post
833:
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826:Bangkok Post
825:
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607:Thai injured
606:
602:Total deaths
601:
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565:Jane Holland
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541:Bhumi Jensen
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534:Ban Nam Khem
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403:seismic risk
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246:You can help
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190:Please help
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81:Please help
76:verification
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35:Please help
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1156:due to the
1099:29 December
1073:(2): 79–96.
1069:(in Thai).
1046:29 December
1015:29 December
985:9 September
958:9 September
592:Thai deaths
521:instead of
359:MarĂa BelĂłn
258:August 2022
194:if you can.
1219:Categories
1005:The Nation
900:2 December
865:23 January
841:References
481:Death toll
345:Khao Lak’s
109:newspapers
38:improve it
1199:Sri Lanka
1174:Indonesia
1089:NewsComAu
954:. Reuters
657:Phang Nga
523:high-rise
519:bungalows
395:Sri Lanka
391:Indonesia
250:talk page
200:June 2014
139:June 2014
44:talk page
1204:Thailand
1184:Maldives
1179:Malaysia
1040:Archived
1036:TIME.com
891:Archived
824:Source:
587:Province
502:Khao Lak
435:Malaysia
343:Most of
307:Khao Lak
298:Thailand
176:require
1194:Somalia
1189:Myanmar
859:Reuters
622:Missing
506:tsunami
439:Vietnam
313:Tsunami
178:cleanup
123:scholar
925:
817:3,716
713:Ranong
685:Phuket
679:2,113
487:Phuket
365:Impact
330:Patong
248:. The
125:
118:
111:
104:
96:
1169:India
894:(PDF)
887:(PDF)
814:8,457
811:2,392
808:6,065
805:5,078
802:2,510
799:2,568
796:Total
769:Trang
741:Satun
704:1,111
676:5,597
673:1,253
670:4,344
667:4,163
664:2,213
661:1,950
648:1,376
629:Krabi
445:, Dr
130:JSTOR
116:books
1101:2014
1048:2014
1017:2014
987:2018
981:. AP
960:2018
923:ISBN
902:2019
867:2024
707:700
651:890
418:Isan
102:news
788:112
735:12
732:246
726:215
723:169
717:167
701:520
698:591
695:259
692:105
689:154
645:568
642:808
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