Category: News; Radio 4; Five Live
Date: 13.12.2005
Printable version
The 91Èȱ¬ is marking the first anniversary of the Boxing Day Tsunami of 2004 with some specially commissioned programmes.
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Journey to the Heart of the Tsunami (91Èȱ¬ ONE, Wednesday 21 December 2005, 8.00pm) brings a daring and ambitious underwater expedition to journey to the source of the tsunami, over three miles down, deep below the ocean surface. We will come face to face with the damage caused when two of the Earth's tectonic plates smash into each other.
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On 91Èȱ¬ Radio 4, the Tsunami Audio Memorial (Saturday 17 December, 8.00pm) has created a memorial in sound and gathered sounds and stories for an historic audio tribute to the region and the people affected by the tsunami.
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In collaboration with the 91Èȱ¬ World Service and the 91Èȱ¬ Asian Network, listeners and online readers were invited to send in their stories, testimonies and sounds.
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Whether it's Indonesian fishermen bringing in their early morning catch, conch shells being blown at dawn and dusk in Hindu households, or the cacophony of a traffic-filled street in Thailand - not forgetting the sea, the birds and the wildlife - this is an evocative and unique collection of sounds.
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These are stories by those who lived to tell the tale. The programme will also be a memorial, in sound, to those who didn't.
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Overturning The Tide (Radio 4, Monday 19 December 2005, 8.00pm) tells the
the extraordinary story of one man's journey from despair to finding hope.
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On 26 December last year, within the space of a few minutes, Karibeeran Paramesvaran's life changed irrevocably. All three of his children died when the deadly tsunami wave hit the shores of their home town, Nagapattinam, on the southern tip of India.
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The children (aged five, nine and 13), were casually playing frisbee on the beach, a few hundred yards from their home, on the way to church on Boxing Day along with the rest of the family.
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Overwhelmed by the surging tide, they were knocked back hundreds of metres. Karibeeran managed to hold on to his son's hand for a few minutes before having to let go.
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Karibeeran survived by clinging to a palm tree and when the waters retreated he searched for the children, discovering their bodies one by one.
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He carried them home, washed and dressed them, and then dug a grave with his own hands before burying them. They died by a cruel irony on his 40th birthday.
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"I dug just one grave and placed my three children in it. I kissed them and poured in three handfuls of sand and asked them to forgive me for not being able to give them flowers or even to make them a proper coffin."
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Since the tragedy, Karibeeran has been sustained by his Christian faith - he converted from Hinduism some years ago - and by his remarkable decision to foster a group of children orphaned by the tsunami.
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On 91Èȱ¬ Radio Five Live on Boxing Day, Julian Worricker's show includes the Five Live Report - Rebuilding from 9.00am and also at 9.00pm.
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After the tsunami struck Asia on Boxing Day, killing more than 200,000 people, there was an outpouring of generosity to those caught up in the tragedy.
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Many holidaymakers who survived felt compelled to do whatever they could in the days following the disaster to help those who had been injured and lost loved ones.
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People volunteered to assist with tasks from distributing water to locating remains.
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A year on, most have returned to their previous lives. For this special Five Live Report, Rebecca Sandles travels to Sri Lanka and Thailand to meet those who have remained to continue helping with the recovery process.
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Their stories are compelling, as they explain why they've given up their old lives and why 12 months after the wave struck there's still much to be done.
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PR/Radio 4 Publicity/Five Live Publicity
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