In 2004, on the morning of Boxing Day, an earthquake with a magnitude of 9.1 triggered a tsunami off the island of Sumatra. Waves up to 17 meters fall on the coasts of Indonesia, India, Sri Lanka, Thailand and nine other countries. Balance sheet: 230,000 dead. The waves are so strong that the impact is felt in East Africa. Fifteen years later, survivors of the disaster are engaged in their reconstruction, and in their sometimes always strong relationship with the sea.
In Lampuuk, Indonesia, Dery Setyawan saw his hometown almost entirely destroyed by the tsunami, which notably claimed his mother, brother and grandmothers. After the drama, the sea has become, for this surfer, a real therapy.
"We don't have the impression that this wave is the same as the one that destroyed us, we no longer think like that," he said. "Beach waves are our friends now".
Muhammad Saleh, a fisherman, also survived the disaster. "I will not leave this village," he said. "People ask me why I am not going away from the sea, but that would be another injury."
Fifteen years after the tsunami, the ruins continue to remind the inhabitants of painful memories. Memories of a lost past: a house, loved ones, a lifetime.
"I continue to pray and wish the best for my family," said student and survivor Abdul Hadi Firsawan. "If the reality is that they are dead, let's hope they are in heaven now."
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