GEORGE TOWN – Today marks 20 years since the devastating Indian Ocean tsunami occurred, a tragedy that took nearly 300,000 lives and displaced millions across 14 countries, just a day after Christmas in 2004.
In Malaysia, the disaster claimed the lives of dozens, many of whom were enjoying the beaches of Batu Feringghi, Balik Pulau and Kuala Muda. Penang was among the worst-hit states, recording 52 of the 68 deaths nationwide.
The memory of that fateful day remains intact for those who have lost their loved ones, as well as those who survived the ordeal and lived on to share the accounts of their survival.
One of them is Miami Cafe co-owner L. Annalmary, 62, a resident at Pantai Miami at Batu Feringghi, whose family have become well-known among the local populace as her youngest daughter – S. Thulaashi – miraculously survived the disaster after being swept away by a big wave.
The “miracle baby”, Thulaashi, born on December 4, 2004 – was just 22 days old when the incident happened. Even more astonishing, she was asleep throughout the ordeal.
Speaking to Scoop, Annalmary recalled the afternoon of the fateful day – when she saw boats fleeing the coast as massive waves were heading to the beach accompanied by an extremely loud noise.
She immediately rushed into the beachside cafe, which is also their home, to fetch Thulaashi when the first wave hit her house in the blink of an eye – causing a blackout.
Her husband A. Suppiah, 75, was holding on to one of the pillars of the cafe house, and her eldest daughter, S. Kanchana, who was 12 years old at that time, was swept away from her house but managed to hold on to a banana tree 10m away.
Meanwhile, Annalmary’s younger brother was also swept by the waves but managed to survive as he was a good swimmer.
“I was trapped in the main room with my dog, with water up to my neck. I kept screaming for help until people broke through the room door and saved me.
“I told my rescuers that I could not open the door to the room where my baby was in, only to learn that the room was damaged by the waves with her being swept away to the sea,” she told Scoop when interviewed at her cafe house.
After saving themselves and Kanchana, both Annalmary and Suppiah then looked around for Thulaashi for nearly an hour until they were alerted by an Indonesian worker who was working at a site above the cafe house that she was found at the beach, on her mattress.
“We immediately rushed the baby to the clinic as she did not open her eyes and we were worried that she swallowed a lot of water as she was also drenched.
“However, the doctor (who was tending to Thulaashi) told us that she was perfectly fine and asleep all the while,” she added.
The news of Thulaashi’s miraculous survival gained media traction, earning her the nickname “tsunami miracle baby”. Thulaashi, who is now 20, is in her third semester of a Bachelor’s in Accounting at Universiti Sains Malaysia.
Annalmary acknowledged that she grappled with trauma and panic for the first few years after the tsunami incident every time she heard the news about earthquakes in Indonesia or any other sea-related natural disasters.
“We were afraid for some time. However, given the fact that we grew up near the sea for a very long time and we have a strong belief in Kadal Matha (Sea Goddess) – whom we pray to every morning – we eventually got rid of the fear,” she added.
Premonition and nightmares
The entire ordeal was surprising for Annalmary because she said she had a premonition that something bad was going to happen on that day.
Both Annalmary and her elder brother, who was living in Langkawi at that time, had nightmares in the weeks leading up to the tragic day that her shop was flooded with water.
“My elder brother told me that he dreamt that my shop was ravaged by the sea, and I scolded him on why he was having such a dream.
“Then two weeks before the tragedy, I had a dream where our shop was flooded by water – and it happened.
“Now, I am able to get a premonition if something (bad) is going to happen – or I will get a glimpse of what is going to happen in my dream,” she expressed.
“We (have made it a practice) to thank god, nature and the universe every night before we go to sleep. We would pray to all.’’
Nevertheless, she and her family are saddened by those who have perished in the tragedy.
According to her, 37 people lost their lives here at Pantai Miami – among them a grandmother and her young granddaughter who could not escape to higher grounds.
Her brother, who owned a boat, assisted the authorities in retrieving the corpses of the tsunami victims around the area.
Therefore, in the memory of the departed, they will be having annual prayers on the anniversary of the tsunami tragedy. – December 26, 2024
