Tsunami victims commemorate 7th anniversary in S. Thailand

Some 500 foreigners and Thais, who are relatives of tsunami victims, gathered at Baan Nam Kem Memorial Park in Thailand's southern Pang Nga province on Monday to commemorate the deadly 2004 tsunami. Buddhist, Muslim and Christian rituals were held in Baan Nam Kem, a small fishing village where some 4,000 people or half of the village's population were killed. After religious rituals were over, participants gradually put flowers on the graves of their lost beloved. Tambon Administrative Office also planned to let off a thousand lanterns at the memorial park late this evening. Meanwhile, Phuket Island on Monday began a day of memorial ceremonies with Buddhist, Christian and Muslim prayers at a Wall of Remembrance. The rites were held at Mai Khao beach, on the northern part of the island. The 2004 tsunami regarded as the deadliest one in the history as more than 150,000 people were dead or missing and millions more were homeless in 11 countries. Triggering by 9.0-magnitude quake under the Indian Ocean near the west coast of the Indonesian island of Sumatra, the giant waves hit several southern provinces on the west coast of Thailand, killing over 5,000 people nationwide.