Loss haunts india´s tsunami victims

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Source: CCTV.com | 12-26-2006 09:59

For 28-year-old Indian Tamilselvi and her fisherman husband, the past two years have not been peaceful. Nightmares of the disaster that killed her three children continue to haunt her.

Now living in a makeshift shack, Tamilselvi spends most of her time guarding her only surviving child. From time to time, she can't help staring at photographs of the children that she lost.

Tamilselvi, tsunami victim, said, "The loss of the children cannot be replaced. Initially I had nightmares thinking about my children. Even now, whenever I am alone I cannot think of anything else but my lost children."

Tamilselvi said while women continued living under the shadow of the tragedy, men found solace in drinking, as a way to drive away their fears and pain.

Iraivan, tsunami victim, said, "Even now whenever somebody says that the sea is rising or something, I feel unsafe about my life."

Psychologists say that although a majority of the survivors have overcome the immediate trauma of the tsunami, many have yet to deal with the emotional scars, even as they rebuild their lives.

S. Kannayiram, unicef consultant, said, "Their loss was irreparable not only in terms of their life, but also in economical terms. Their sustainabilities and also they fear whether anything would come again and again."

The December 26 catastrophe killed more than 231,000 people in a dozen nations around the Indian Ocean.

Editor:Du Xiaodan