We live in Duri, Indonesia, on the island of Sumatra. Despite our proximity, we didn't feel the earthquake and have not been affected. Our hearts go out to those who have lost loves ones. A sad day indeed...

Stan is quite right...economic repercussions of this devastation are likely to be severe and protracted...so many dead in Sri Lanka and coastal Tamil Nadu...our prayers are with all those who have/are suffering...

Hi Tenit,there didn't appear to have been any warning,the company I work for have four yachts,they new nothing and were shocked when I phoned them of the problem,if there was a warning ,it didn't get around.
I'm trying to get some information on Kho Samui,I was told it had been hit,but one Fodorite says it wasn't,when the phones are restored I will phone the island and get first hand information and report.
Meanwhile the second wave that everyone was expecting,hasn't occured,Yet.
Langkawi was hit, Rebak Marina was destroyed,much equipment damage but no reports of loss of life.

Sydneyx - For the peace of mind of anybody who has friends and/or relatives on Samui I can confirm that the island was not affected.

The southern peninsula of Thailand & Malaysia acted as a huge breakwater and thus the gulf of Thailand was not affected only the western shore of the peninsula or the area fronting the Andaman sea or the Indian ocean.

Sydneyx - for a nautical person you should be able to figure this out!

Hi Hanuman,have managed to get thro.to Kho Samui and you are absolutely correct,Samui Ok.

Whew! I just heard from my friend/colleague in BKK-I was quite concerned, as I knew she was out traveling around with her family. It turns out that they decided at the last minute against going to Phuket for the long weekend. However a friend of hers who did go to Phuket is still missing.

We were in our 22nd floor hotel room in Bangkok when this happened yesterday. The building was really, really rocking, and it kept going on and on. I ran to my daughters' room and told them to get out, but of course they kept saying, "we're not dressed yet". A manager arrived on the floor and said she was checking for damage, so at that point, we all went outside. Lots of guests, especially those from earthquake areas were out there. I couldn't believe how powerful it felt, so knew that somewhere it had sone some damage. My daughter hasn't been able to reach her's Thai friend in the south, so we're still worried

My heart goes out to all affected.

http://www.pantip.com/cafe/chalermth.../A3199732.html

Hope everyone is fine!

www.phuketgazette.net

They have Consul Emergency numbers

Does anyone have numbers that cover similar for Maldives/Sri Lanka etc?

Contrary to earlier CNN bulletins claiming it was totally destroyed, I have read a press release from the Laguna Complex that claims it suffered relatively little damage.

The Laguna Phuket is apparantly fully functional and is still operating. The hotels have electricity and water supplies, and no major destruction to buildings has taken place.

The Dusit, which has the widest beach front of the Laguna Hotels, was affected by what our source described as more of a very large swell, than a whole Tsunami such as the one that devastated Patong and other areas of Phuket.

The Laguna had 50 rooms in total damaged at its 3 beach front hotels (Laguna Beach Resort, Dusit Laguna and Sheraton Grande). The Dusit taking the brunt due to its wider beachfront

The Laguna reports that a small number of guests and staff sustained injuries, but nothing too serious. A major clean up is currently underway, and the beach is expected to re-open Tuesday.

(Source:- http://www.asiatraveltips.com/travel...2-Laguna.shtml)

The Allamanda and Banyan Tree were relatively unaffected.

I have also read reports that the JW Marriott was relatively lightly affected by the Tsunami

Hope this comes as good news to anyone who has family and friends working or holidaying at the Laguna Complex at this worrying time.

It sounds like Railay got off reasonably well. They are updating information sporadically.

www.railay.com

The Narenthorn Center has set up a website, http://ems.narenthorn.or.th/tsunami/login.php for people wishing to find details of relatives or friends.

The username is: user

The password is: password

My heart goes out to all the people affected by this natural disaster.

-Sharon

Hi Orgy 7- I heard the news immediately. I'm in Ghana, West Africa right now and the BBC World News has been covering the events since the very beginning and yesterday it was on non-stop.Earthquakes are not a pleasant experience. I have lived in an earthquake state for nearly 45 years and have been though many. There's nothing worse than the ground moving...and it's so unfortunate that all those people near the ocean were either injured or killed. But thank goodness it didn't hit underground instead of under the ocean because a 9.0 would have flattened everything. Got to go. It's 25 cents a minute to type this message. Take care and Happy Travels!

For those interested, but a host of charities is currently accepting donations - Canadian Red Cross, for one.

God bless.

The "but" in my previous post was a typo, sorry!

I spent 5 of the best nights of our trip last March at the Mom Tris hotel.We made friends with the staff as we spent day after day on the Dinner Deck and beach.Has anybody heard about the Mom Tris? It must have been breakfast hour when the wave hit.I pray for the people there.

Everyone here in the UK is horrified to hear about this latest disaster. Our thoughts and prayers go out to those poor souls.
Is there any news about how badly hit Penang in Malaysia was? We are not getting much news about that area.
It seems this year it has been one natural disaster after another, it's as if nature itself has gone mad.
God protect you all.
CM

I have nothing to add except thoughts and prayers for all who were involved. A special prayer for any of our Fodorites who either live there or have been travelling in the affected areas.

My heart and thoughts go out to all those affected by this. In today's newspaper was a list of organizations accepting donations. Concerns now for unsafe living/sanitation conditions for the survivors.


American Jewish World Service
45 West 36th St., 10th floor
New York, NY 10018
(800) 889-7146
http://www.ajws.org

American Red Cross
International Response Fund
PO Box 37243
Washington, DC 20013
(800) HELP NOW
http://www.redcross.org

Catholic Relief Services
PO Box 17090
Baltimore, MD 21203-7090
(800) 736-3467
http://www.catholicrelief.org

Direct Relief International
27 South La Patera Lane
Santa Barbara, CA 93117
(805) 964-4767
http://www.directrelief.org

Doctors Without Borders/Medecins Sans Frontieres
PO Box 2247
New York, NY 10116-2247
(888) 392-0392
http://www.doctorswithoutborders.org

International Medical Corps
11500 West Olympic Blvd., Suite 506
Los Angeles, CA 90064
(800) 481-4462
http://www.imcworldwide.org

International Orthodox Christian Charities
Middle East Crisis Response
PO Box 630225
Baltimore, MD 21263-0225
(877) 803-4622
http://www.iocc.org

Operation USA
8320 Melrose Avenue, Ste. 200
Los Angeles, CA 90069
(800) 678-7255
http://www.opusa.org