Die Welle: Überlebende berichten von Thailands Tsunami & den Folgen | Focus TV Reportage

On December 26, 2004, an earthquake struck the Indian Ocean. The resulting tsunami devastated vast swathes of Southeast Asia. More than 220,000 people lost their lives. Among the dead were approximately 500 Germans, and several thousand were injured, some severely. Entire families were wiped out by the wave. Those fortunate enough to survive still suffer the consequences of the tsunami, some even ten years later. While their physical wounds have mostly healed, many have suffered lasting psychological trauma. How are the bereaved, the survivors, and the rescuers coping, and how has the disaster changed their lives in the long term? How do people at the site of the catastrophe deal with what happened today? Could such a tragedy happen again? To mark the tenth anniversary in 2014, the Focus TV report went in search of answers and met people whose lives were turned upside down in an instant in 2004: Lieselotte Narjes from Hamburg barely survived the wave at her Thai holiday resort in Khao Lak, suffering severe injuries. She was rescued by her husband, Heinz, who, although physically unharmed, never recovered from the horrific experience and suffered lasting psychological consequences. Stefan Samm from Murnau survived the tsunami but is still considered traumatized, having lost a close friend in the wave. After the tsunami, he also lost all emotional support in Germany. Only trauma therapy and meetings in a support group helped him find his way back to a normal life. Michael Becker is a volunteer disaster relief worker with the Federal Agency for Technical Relief (THW) in Freisen, Saarland. Together with a THW (German Federal Agency for Technical Relief) rescue team, he went to Khao Lak to search for survivors, but found only dead bodies in the hotel complexes of the Sofitel Magic Lagoon and the Similana Resort. It became one of the worst and most hopeless missions of his life. Nothing is more gripping than reality – reports on topics that move Germany. Always critical and investigative, always right in the thick of things! First broadcast: December 10, 2014 *************************************** ► Subscribe now for free: https://bit.ly/2KObHbZ ► More about Focus TV Reportage: https://bit.ly/2Iq8X1X *************************************** #focustv #reportage #documentary FOCUS TV Reportage shows real people, exciting stories, and true emotions. Since 2005, we have been showing life through the camera lens – up close, authentic, and captivating, every Tuesday at 11:10 p.m. on Sat.1! Imprint: Burda Studios Pictures GmbH c/o Focus TV Produktions GmbH Arabellastraße 23, 81925 Munich