Prayers mark the fifth anniversary of tsunami

Patong, Dec 26: The fifth anniversary of tsunami was marked with prayers from thousands saffron robe-clad monks for the victims of the Asia's greatest disaster in 2004.

The monks gathered in Ban Nam Khem, a small fishing village on Andaman Sea Coast in Thailand where almost half of its 5,000 people lost their lives.

The event is a replica of the several events which will be carried out across Asia in remembrance of the gruesome day in Asia's history.

"All souls from all nationalities, wherever you are now, please receive the prayers the monks are saying for you," said Kularb Pliamyai, a victim of the tsunami in which he lost 10 of his family members.

The Indian Ocean tsunami in Dec 26, 2004 claimed 226,000 people in 13 countries.

Meanwhile in Indonesia's Banda Aceh, the prayers rang out for victims, as the survivors thronged in mosques as well homes on the eve of the fateful day when the undersea earthquake off the island of Sumatra engulfed their close ones.

Indonesia accounted for the most number of deaths and 166,000 missing people.

Survivors in Bade Aceh are putting back the pieces of their lives, five years after the fateful day.

New city was rebuilt on top of the ruins with the help of reconstruction aid.

OneIndia News