Aceh residents held memorial services yesterday on the 11th anniversary of the tsunami that killed at least 165,000 people in Indonesia’s westernmost province.
Governor Zaini Abdullah and regional officials visited a mass grave of tsunami victims, and then attended a memorial religious service at a mosque.
Fishermen marked the tragedy by abstaining taking their boats out on Friday and yesterday. “Fishermen were advised not to go fishing for two days in remembrance of the tsunami and because it was Friday,” Miftah Cut Adek, a community leader was quoted by news web site Detik.com.
A powerful undersea earthquake that struck about 160 kilometres off the western coast of Sumatra island generated giant waves that devastated coastal areas in Aceh.
Victims included 37,000 injured and about half a million displaced people.The tidal waves also caused death and destruction in India, Thailand, Malaysia, Sri Lanka and elsewhere in the Indian Ocean, including coastal Africa.
Meanwhile, provinces in southern Thailand also held memorial services in various locations along the western coast that was hit by giant waves that killed more than 5,300 people in the country 11 years before.
Anniversary events were held at Kamala Memorial Stone, Mai Khao Memorial Wall, Phuket City Hall and Patong Beach in the southern resort island of Phuket.Interfaith ceremonies were also held in resort towns across the Andaman coast from Phang Nga province to Phi Phi archipelago.
Many relatives from abroad who lost their loved ones in the December 26, 2004 tsunami travelled to Thailand to join the service.
The tsunami struck during peak tourist season at the beaches and islands in Thailand, killing thousands of holidaymakers as well as workers and villagers.