ISLAMABAD DEC 23 (ONLINE): In front of Saudah’s house on Indonesia’s Sumatra island lie two damaged coast guard ships, washed ashore by a tsunami 20 years ago and a daily reminder that her youngest son has yet to come home.
Saudah, who like many Indonesians goes by one name, believes Muhammad Siddiq, who was six when the devastating Indian Ocean tsunami struck on Dec. 26, 2004, is still alive and has not given up hope that he might one day return.
The deadly wave, triggered by a 9.1 magnitude quake, killed some 230,000 people along the coasts of more than a dozen countries, including India, Indonesia, Sri Lanka and Thailand making it one of the deadliest disasters in recorded history.
More than half the dead were in Aceh, the province on Sumatra’s northern tip where Saudah and her family live.
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