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| Phuket
after theTsunami |
Things
on Phuket are returning to normal at a remarkable rate after Boxing Day’s tsunami hit
the coast. Much of the island’s administrative and emergency services were untouched by
the devastation and it is likely that this is one of the chief reasons why the island has
been able to bounce back so quickly from this terrible ordeal. All major roads are still
open and water and electricity supplies – except in a few small areas where damage was
heaviest – are continuous and strong.
Since the afternoon after the tsunami, Artasia editors have been touring the areas of the
island hit by the wave. Below is an area by area breakdown compiled from these reports.
Artasia will continue to update these as the days pass and new information comes to light.
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PHUKET
INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT
Though seawater did breach the protective wall and initially flooded the runway at Phuket
International Airport when the wave – in fact waves – hit, airport emergency crews
quickly brought everything under control and it was re-opened by early Sunday evening and
receiving flights from Bangkok, including one carrying Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra
who came to personally supervise the early stages of the rescue and clean-up efforts.
Since then, there have been no signs of the chaos and madness some news agencies have been
reporting. There is more an air of mild perturbedness and it's a little busier than usual
for a high season. It's as busy with people arriving as leaving. While some of these are
people here to search for lost relatives and friends and the rescue workers arriving from
Bangkok and international agencies, many more are holiday-makers who have checked with
their hotels and found them to be fully operational.
NAI YANG BEACH
Nai Yang Beach, just south of the airport, is decimated, however the two major hotels –
Crown Nai Yang Suite and Pearl Village – set some way back from the beach – have
received only nominal damage and will be back in full operation within a week or two,
though the latteris not currently recommending bookings. Nai Yang Beach Resort is closed
until further notice. Along the road closest to the beach, there is not a single shop, bar
or restaurant that has not been destroyed – some are simply not there anymore. On the
Thursday after the wave the clean up operation was in full swing. Some places have even
started rebuilding.
NAI THON BEACH
At Andaman White Beach Resort the day after the wave, staff from the hotel had returned
the beach to its usual pristine condition. When the wave hit here staff had already
removed all of the guests from the beach and they were safely back in the hotel, which is
set fairly high up the hillside. The only damage was to the resort’s dive centre and new
beach bar – both at beach level – the latter, ironically, only having opened on
Christmas Day. The new Trisara resort received only nominal damage to its beachfront pool
and buildings.
LAYAN BEACH
While there was significant damage to the beach area – with seawater surging back some
400 metres from the beachfront, there is little development on or near Layan Beach and so,
fortunately, little damage except for the downing of a few electrical poles. Layan Beach
Resort is set well back from the beach and received no damage whatsoever to the rooms, but
some water damage to there beach front buildings.
BANGTAO BEACH (Laguna)
Despite claims that it was totally destroyed in some TV news broadcasts, the
internationally renowned Laguna Phuket complex, which fronts onto the centre of Bangtao
Beach, has reported that only fifty of its 1100 rooms have been put out of action by the
wave. One guest was killed when the water hit the resorts.
The five hotels are reporting that they will be fully operational in less than a month
with damage restricted to ground floor rooms close to the beach and a number of their
beachfront restaurants and pools. At Laguna Beach Resort the day after the wave, many
guests languished not in misery but upon sun-loungers, baking beneath the clear blue
skies.
The south end of Bangtao Beach was not so lucky and took a huge hit. Bill O'Leary – an
Aussie who runs the famous Aman Cruises operation from here – reported a surge of two
metres plus, that did not withdraw for well over an hour. Everything is damaged, much
beyond repair. To describe the power of the wave at Bangtao, after it had smashed across
about 200 metres – through trees, holiday bungalows and hotels – it ripped layers of
tarmac off of the road and flung great chunks of it into the shops and bars behind.
Eddying waters did further destruction, eroding large sections of the waterfront and
causing further property damage and loss of life. Many of the bungalow operations and
hotels in this area will not be fit for tourists for several months. Some may never
re-open as they are just not there anymore.
Fifteen of the bungalows nearest the waterline at the Chedi Phuket resort were damaged,
management believe they will be able to re-open these to guests in about two months.
Rydges Beach Resort had water damage to between 10 and 15 of its rooms closest to the
beach that will require a week’s work to repair.
SURIN BEACH
Surin Beach is back to business as usual. Two days after the wave hit, the detritus on the
beach had been neatly swept into large piles and the quaint rows of wooden bars,
restaurants and food vendors were open to a busy stream of tourists.
The new Twinpalms resort nearest the beach received no damage whatsoever and is operating
at full capacity. While flooding destroyed the Amanpuri’s gym, and beach and tour
counters, the rest of the resort is operating normally and the lives of guests’ safe
thanks to the work of quick-witted employees.
KAMALA BEACH
Kamala Bay Terrace Resort, Kamala Beach Resort and Kamala Dreams resort are all closed
until further notice; however Kamala Bay Garden Resort received no damage and is still
open.
Kamala received the heaviest and most widespread damage of any of Phuket’s beaches.
Much of what was there isn’t anymore and the central beach area – once filled with
happy bars, restaurants and shops – is today barely recognizable. Only the police
station stands relatively undamaged at the centre of a crushed community. The waters
destroyed virtually everything as far back as the main coast road, with flooding reported
in the Phuket Fantasea compound. The roads closest to the beach are still closed to
traffic and crews are working hard to restore basic amenities.
Many people died at Kamala, and accurate figures are not yet available. Thai locals and
some tourists, seeing the tide go out over three hundred metres very quickly, ran onto the
beach with buckets to collect the fish that were flopping around on the sand. Though the
wave did not come for over fifteen minutes, many were caught out on the sand when it did
and were lost.
KALIM BEACH
While none of the major Kalim hotels have reported damage, except Residence Kalim Bay
which suffered some water damage but is otherwise open, two major real estate offices and
the local school, which sits across the beachfront coast road, were hit hard by the wave.
There is also some damage to the road itself, but – as of Thursday – this was under
repair.
PATONG BEACH - the island’s famous nightlife, restaurants and shopping
centre
Most of Patong beach road was open to traffic by Saturday, except where damage was
heaviest around the Impiana Phuket Cabana. Khun Wallee of Cabana reported that damage was
so widespread at her absolute beachfront resort that it will not re-open until October
’05. Two guests were killed but no staff lost. Khun Wallee claimed that this was due to
the alertness of the Massage ladies on the beach who spotted what was about to happen and
warned guests and staff just in time.
Incredibly, directly opposite Cabana on the other side of the beach road, Thara Patong
Beach Resort is advertising “Good Condition Rooms Available”. An employee stated that
no rooms were damaged during the deluge and only the restaurants at the front of the
resort are out of action.
Clean-up crews are working hard to bring back some semblance of normalcy to the beach
road, however there is not a single business along this stretch that has not been very
badly damaged. It will be several months before all the scars have healed. The premises of
major chain stores and name businesses that are now just shells – among the many others
– include McDonalds, Starbucks, Watsons, KFC, Molly Malones and countless restaurants,
jewellery stores and tailor’s shops.
Other hotels along Patong beach road caught by the wave include Seaview Patong, reporting
100 percent damage, Horizon Beach Resort, Patong Resort, Patong Merlin, Patong Beach
Hotel, Amari Coral Beach and several others all closed until further notice. However the
Hyton Leelavadee and Duangjitt Resort, both set back just a few hundred metres from the
beach road, and the Royal Paradise while all receiving modest water damage are operating
normally. Many, many others have received no damage at all and continue to run at full
capacity
By 150 metres up the famous Soi Bangla things are getting pretty much back to normal. Even
the well-known Kangaroo Bar and the bars on either side have re-opened. By the end of Soi
Bangla and onto Rat-U-Thit Road, all the major nightclubs and restaurants are still open
and busy. Standing at the Bangla Junction at midnight, just three days after the wave, you
would not even know that anything had happened. Music booms, lights flash and the party is
very much still hot. On New Year’s Eve a special service of remembrance was held at this
junction with many tourists, expats and Thais gathering to pay their respects
Merlin Beach Resort, on the road to Tri Trang Beach, just south of Patong, received
extensive damage to its front, despite being set back a good 400 metres from the beach.
The resort is closed until further notice. The small restaurant, just off that beach and
popular with many expats, is gone.
Le Meridien Phuket Beach Resort – on the small bay between Patong and Karon – has been
evacuated and closed. The hotel is reporting damage to its pool and beachfront
restaurants. Staff confided that the biggest problem was with electricity and water
supplies. Guests have been transferred to the Sheraton Laguna Phuket, Hilton Arcadia at
Karon and Royal Meridian Phuket Yacht Club at Naiharn – all of which are coastal
properties but received only minor water damage and are operating normally. Le Meridien
Phuket Beach Resort is expected to re-open in February.
SMALL BEACHES SOUTH OF PATONG
Merlin Beach Resort, alone and exposed on a small beach 2 kilometres south of Patong,
received extensive damage to its front, despite being set well back from the beach –
which faces the direction of the wave. The resort is closed until further notice.
At the next beach south Le Meridien Phuket Beach Resort – on the small bay between
Patong and Karon – has been evacuated and closed. The hotel is reporting damage to its
pool and beachfront restaurants. Staff confided that the biggest problem was with
electricity and water supplies. Guests have been transferred to the Sheraton Laguna
Phuket, Hilton Arcadia at Karon and Royal Meridian Phuket Yacht Club at Naiharn – all of
which are coastal properties but received only minor water damage and are operating
normally. Le Meridien Phuket Beach Resort is expected to re-open in February.
KARON BEACH
All of the big hotels here are set well back from the beach and on fairly high ground,
including the Hilton Arcadia. The Hilton’s Zen restaurant is closed due to water damage
but the resort is otherwise operating normally. Karon Princess Hotel, Karona Resort and
Spa, Karon Sea Sand Resort, Karon View Resort, and Karon Whale Resort Phuket and Kaorn Bay
View are all undamaged as are the many smaller guest houses in the area. At the north
corner of the Karon Beach Road, and perhaps the resort closest to the beach, Phuket Golden
Sand Inn had fifty bungalows damaged by the flooding. Problems with electricity supply
were cited as the chief reason for the hotel’s closure, but staff claimed it would be
open again within a week. Phuket Island View, another resort close to the beach road also
received some damage. Twenty bungalows are without aircon and the pool is closed but the
resort was otherwise running normally.
The layout of Karon saved it from receiving anywhere near the level of property damage
other beaches suffered, though some shops and bars along the beach road – including the
small local market – received nominal damage, as the wave crested the wide swathe of
grass between the beach and the road. However, as of Thursday most were under repair and
the market was back in action. There was serious flooding at the stadium at the south end
of Karon.
On the hill between Kata and Karon Marina Phuket was high enough up that it received no
damage except to its Karon waterfront On the rock restaurant. Karon Beach Resort – on
that same hill but with more exposure – received damage to its lower floor rooms and is
closed until February, staff reported.
KATA BEACH
At the south end, the famous beachfront hotel Mom Tri’s Boathouse was badly damaged, but
only on the ground floor. Rooms on the second and third floors were untouched. The entire
ground floor restaurant and lobby was washed away. Owner and architect Mom Tri Devakul,
who was touring the scene of the damage on Thursday reported the hotel rooms will be open
again before the weekend and that he will take this opportunity to remodel the restaurant.
“It was due for a renovation anyway,” he said with a wan smile.
There was significant damage to the restaurants and bars south and north end of Kata
Beach. Club Med – which dominates the central stretch of the beach road – was
inundated at one end but untouched at the other. For safety the hotel was evacuated. We
have not yet been able to contact anyone from the hotel to confirm when it will be ready
to re-open.
Photo taken on January 04
Kata Beach Resort, also beachfront, received only nominal damage to some of its ground
floor rooms and the pool was flooded out. The bars and restaurants at the back of the Kata
Beach Resort, behind the Boathouse and at Kata Corner received no damage and were serving
customers on the night of the wave. Some of the small shanty bars and shops behind Club
Med were damaged but were getting back to normal as of Saturday.
The Kata Thani Hotel and Resort on Kata Noi Beach received some damage to its ground floor
and swimming pool, but is otherwise fully operational. Guests in the ground floor rooms
have been transferred to the hotel’s sister property the undamaged Katathani Bhuri, just
across the Kata Noi beach road. The small beach front restaurants and some of the beach
road shop were damaged by the wave but, as of Friday, were all being cleaned up and
rebuilt.
NAIHARN BEACH AND ENVIRONS
At the southern tip of the island, Naiharn Beach was also hit hard by the wave, covering
it in a thick layer of detritus. The bamboo restaurants at the back of the beach were all
open and busy with guests at lunch time on Saturday. The same cannot be said, alas, for
the restaurants at the entrance to the Royal Meridien Phuket Yacht Club, as they no longer
exist. However, the Royal Meridien itself received only very minor damage and is still
fully operational. Sabana resort, just beyond the destroyed restaurants, received damage
to its office buildings and parking lot, but the main hotel building was not affected.
Clean up of the beach was completed by Friday, but large piles of foliage and broken beach
equipment still sat along the back of the beach on Saturday waiting to be cleared away.
Despite earlier reports, the bungalow resorts along Ao Sein Beach, just beyond Royal
Meridien, received very little damage. Only three bungalows closest to the beach were
damaged and the beachfront restaurant was totally destroyed. As of Saturday, however,
rebuilding work on the restaurant was well advanced, with staff and guests all chipping in
to help with the work.
Two guest bungalow resorts and private homes at Yanui Beach, the tiny inlet at the other
end of Naiharn, have been completely destroyed. The damage to Yanui stretches several
hundred metres inland.
RAWAI BEACH
There was moderate but extensive damage along the sea wall at Rawai and several boats were
destroyed, but the beach road remained open throughout. The well-known Nikita’s Bar was
also damaged, but was back open for business two days after the wave. The Sea-Gypsy
village did not fare as well with significant damage and loss of life. By Saturday many of
the homes had been rebuilt there and fishermen were busy repairing nets and boats.
The Evason has announced that it is still fully operational, though the hotel’s jetty
was washed away.
CHALONG AND AO YON BEACHES
A heavy wash ran up the lower east coast of Phuket, Chalong Bay, making a bit of a mess of
the beach and leaving large chunks of boat propped up along the beach wall, but only a few
light injuries. There was water damage to a couple of the beach front bungalow resorts,
including Friendship Beach, but this has since been cleaned up and the restaurant is
operating on an almost complete menu as of Friday. Chef Charlie says everything will be
back on in the next few days. Guests were returning to there rooms just three days after
the flooding. Vichit Bungalows is also back to full service.
Passing across Chalong Bay, the wave did destroy a very old, rickety and dangerous jetty
used by the longtail boats, but left the new concrete Chalong Pier intact. The famous
Jimmy’s Lighthouse restaurant at the pier received no damage and was open for business
that evening.
The wave went on to hit Ao Yon hard, but caused only moderate property damage, mainly to
the premises of CoralSeekers, which bases its tour and yachting operations from there. The
clean up there was well underway the day after the wave hit.
NAI YANG BEACH
Nai Yang Beach, just south of the airport, is decimated. However, the two major hotels
here – Crown Nai Yang Suite and Pearl Village are set some way back from the beach and
received only nominal damage. They will be back in full operation within a week or two,
though the latter is not currently recommending bookings. Nai Yang Beach Resort is closed
until further notice. Along the road closest to Nai Yang beach not a single shop, bar or
restaurant survived. On the Thursday the clean up operation was in full swing, with some
places already rebuilding.
PHUKET CITY
The island’s business and administrative centre received no damage whatsoever. The
city’s fishing port was not so lucky. A huge swell roared up the channel past
Rattanachai boatyard, dragging dozens of large and small fishing boats off their moorings
and thrusting them into a tangled mass against the bridge to Sirey Island.
The Sea Gypsy village on Sirey was also hit hard, with many homes destroyed. One lady from
the village reported that, fortunately – and surprisingly, considering the damage –
there were no dead or missing, only a few injuries.
BEACH CLEAN-UP AND REBUILDING AROUND THE ISLAND
As of Thursday, Royal Thai Army engineers from Ratchaburi, staff from many hotels and
villagers from both seafront and inland communities had completed total clean ups of many
of Phuket’s beaches, including Kata, Karon and Naiharn. Others are expected to be
finished before the weekend is out.
Most of the hotels and resorts that were caught by the wave are reporting very minor
damage – averaging between 15 and 20 rooms each. Of the several hundred hotels and guest
houses that the island has to offer, only a dozen or so have been completely closed down
and most have received no damage whatsoever. All that we were able to contact claim that
full service will be returned in just a couple of weeks. It should also be noted that
damage caused by the tsunami on Phuket has directly affected less than ten percent of the
island.
Elsewhere along the coast, the story is not so good. Rescue workers in Khao Lak, north of
Phuket, and returning from the popular island destination of Phi Phi, to the south, speak
of unparalleled destruction and loss of life. It will be many months, indeed years, before
these places recover.
The weight of human loss and loss of livelihoods that it has wrought, and that which is
still yet to come to light, is of course immeasurable. To all those people affected, we
send out our most heartfelt condolences. We know you are many and we hope that we can be
as strong as you and stand beside you in the months to come.
It is the Thai people who, in what would be considered overwhelming circumstances for many
westerners, are quietly, stoically, cleaning up and beginning the rebuilding work on
Phuket. It is a scene repeated up and down the coast. There are no scenes of wailing
desperation, so beloved of CNN and BBC, despite the enormous tasks that face them.
Where foreign tourists have fled the “terror”, the Thai people are still here. Despite
their losses there are no mercy flights to whisk them away. They will be here throughout
all that is to come. The Thai people of Phuket, Krabi and Phang Nga are the heroes here,
for it is they who have lost the most and they will be the ones who take on the task of
rebuilding the Pearl of the Andaman.
Reports by:
Scott Murray, Senior Editor, ARTASIA PRESS
Simon Hand, Associate Editor, Asia-Pacific TROPICAL HOMES
Hayley Windsor, Reporter, PHUKET Magazine
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