PHUKET - Ten years after being ravaged by the tsunami, Phuket and Phangnga will hold its most significant memorial service to mark the loss of thousands of lives on that fateful day.
The two southern provinces hold a ceremony every year on Dec 26 to pray for the victims who lost their lives on Dec 26, 2004. But the event this year will be one of the biggest.
The programme in Phangnga will run on Dec 26 and 27 at the Tor 813 Memorial at Khao Lak in Takua Pa district with key figures from the government and other countries to attend, officials said on Wednesday.
The memorial was built at the place where a navy patrol ship was washed ashore by the tsunami as it swept in from the Andaman Sea deep into the mainland. The tsunami, the first to hit the country, damaged all Andaman coastal provinces from Ranong to Satun. But Khao Lak and Phuket island were hit hardest.
Altogether about 8,000 people died in the southern provinces, many of them foreigners on vacation in Phangnga and Phuket.
The programme in Phuket will be held from Dec 26 to Dec 28, starting with religious ceremonies at Mai Khao morgue in Thalang district and ending at Patong beach, one of the most damaged areas.
The highlight will be a candlelight ceremony held on Patong of more than one kilometre on the night of Dec 26, Paiboon Upatsarueng, the Phuket Provincial Administration Organisation chairman, said.
''After 10 years, the Indian Ocean tsunami is still one of the most devastating disasters to hit Thailand. The tenth anniversary will be a service for those who lost their lives and will pay tribute to all officials and volunteers who actively joined hands to help on those days,'' Deputy Foreign Ministry spokesman Russ Jalichandra said on Wednesday.
The Foreign Ministry and other government agencies have joined the provinces to arrange the activities this year.
Since the disaster, Thailand has set up a tsunami warning system and drills, and Phuket governor Nisit Chansomwong said activities this year will showcase preparations for tsunami alerts.
Aceh province in Indonesia will also hold a special ceremony to mark the event.