Tsunami survivor teaches children in Indonesia how to flee the disaster, 15 years on

Record ID: 1449687

  • Title: Tsunami survivor teaches children in Indonesia how to flee the disaster, 15 years on
  • Date: 19th December 2019
  • Summary: BANDA ACEH, INDONESIA (RECENT) (REUTERS) KINDERGARTEN CHILDREN GATHERING OUTSIDE TSUNAMI MUSEUM / TOUR GUIDE ARMILLA YANTI SPEAKING TO CHILDREN YANTI SPEAKING TO CHILDREN VARIOUS CHILDREN MUSEUM ENTRANCE CHILDREN AND THEIR TEACHERS WALKING OVER MUSEUM'S BRIDGE CHILDREN GATHERING AND LISTEN TO YANTI TOUR GUIDE BRIEFING CHILDREN (SOUNDBITE) (Bahasa Indonesia) TSUNAMI SURVIVOR AND MUSEUM TOUR GUIDE, ARMILLA YANTI, SAYING: "My name is Armilla Yanti, I am 44 years old. I'm one of the survivors of the tsunami that happened on December 26. I work here at the tsunami museum to introduce disaster mitigation measures and educate the communities." CHILDREN WATCHING FILM ABOUT TSUNAMI AT MUSEUM THEATRE CHILDREN LOOKING AT SCREEN SCREEN SHOW DOCUMENTARY OF TSUNAMI (SOUNDBITE) (Bahasa Indonesia) TSUNAMI SURVIVOR AND MUSEUM TOUR GUIDE, ARMILLA YANTI, SAYING: "We educate visitors through our stories, of what we had experienced. For example like myself, since I'd experienced the trauma of tsunami, when I met the visitors I shared my experiences and trauma so that they will never forget that there was a terrible tsunami happened in Aceh on December 26." VARIOUS YANTI SPEAKING TO CHILDREN (SOUNDBITE) (Bahasa Indonesia) KINDERGARTEN STUDENT, BIMA AL FARIZI, SAYING: "There is the wave (when the tsunami hit)." REPORTER ASK: What will you do to save yourself？ "We should run to higher ground." (SOUNDBITE) (Bahasa Indonesia) KINDERGARTEN STUDENT, MUHAMMAD AZIS, SAYING: "Wave, big wave." REPORTER ASK: Where will you go to save yourself if tsunami happened? "We must run to higher ground." REPORTER ASK: Are you afraid? "Of course, scared." CHILDREN LISTENING TO YANTI SIGN READING (Bahasa Indonesia) "ACEH TSUNAMI MUSEUM" EXTERIOR OF ACEH TSUNAMI MUSEUM A MONUMENT OF WOODEN BOAT ON A HOUSE AND SOUND OF KORAN RECITING VARIOUS OF TSUNAMI SURVIVOR AND SOUVENIR SELLER, MUNDIYAH BINTI SAHAN, RECITING KORAN AT THE MONUMENT COMPLEX MUNDIYAH'S HAND HOLDING KORAN AND PRAYING BEADS VARIOUS MUNDIYAH RECITING KORAN (SOUNDBITE) (Bahasa Indonesia) TSUNAMI SURVIVOR AND SOUVENIR SELLER, MUNDIYAH BINTI SAHAN SAYING: "I always tell the younger generation if you live or near the beach area like us, and if there is a strong earthquake after the shock has stopped just run away because there might be no more time. In the past why didn't we run? Because we didn't know." EXTERIOR OF PUBLIC WORKS AND URBAN HOUSING AGENCY SIGN READING (English): "PUPR" (PUBLIC WORKS AND URBAN HOUSING AGENCY) (SOUNDBITE) (Bahasa Indonesia) HEAD OF PUBLIC WORKS AND URBAN HOUSING AGENCY, JALALUDIN SAYING: "Now the communities know and understand because they had experienced the tsunami and earthquake, that quake that generate the tsunami, so they understand. But as you know that the people of Aceh are very religious so they assume and believe that it is the destiny of God." REFLECTION OF JALALUDIN ON MIRROR / JALALUDIN SPEAKING (SOUNDBITE) (Bahasa Indonesia) HEAD OF PUBLIC WORKS AND URBAN HOUSING AGENCY, JALALUDIN SAYING: "In terms of education, we showed examples of a building that was destroyed by the tsunami in each village that was refurbished with the help of JICA (Japan International Cooperation Agency). The water level was marked as a way to remind people." A BUILDING DESTROYED BY TSUNAMI USED AS INDICATOR BALCONY WATER LEVEL INDICATOR ON SECOND FLOOR OF THE HOUSE STEEL-SUPPORTED DESTROYED BUILDING SILHOUETTE OF THE HOUSE TIMELAPSE OF SUN SETTING BEHIND HILLS (MUTE) VARIOUS CALL TO PRAYER AT BANDA ACEH GRAND MOSQUE OF BAITURRAHMAN PEOPLE WALKING IN MOSQUE MOON
  • Embargoed: 2nd January 2020 10:18
  • Keywords: Aceh Indian Ocean Indonesia Tourism Tsunami Museum commemoration tsunami
  • Location: BANDA ACEH, INDONESIA
  • City: BANDA ACEH, INDONESIA
  • Country: Indonesia
  • Topics: Disaster/Accidents,Earthquakes/Volcanoes/Tsunami
  • Reuters ID: LVA001BAX3GP3
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: Armilla Yanti was returning from a Sunday market trip with her family when a killer tsunami wave washed away her elderly parents on the fateful Boxing Day of 2004.
    Fifteen years later, the resident of Indonesia's Aceh decided to tell her story to visitors travelling from all over Indonesia and the world, to educate and remind them about the dangers of the natural disaster.
    "We educate visitors through our stories, of what we had experienced. Since I'd experienced the trauma of tsunami, when I met the visitors I shared my experiences and trauma so that they will never forget that there was a terrible tsunami happened in Aceh on December 26," said the 44-year-old.
    Over 230,000 people were killed in Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India, Thailand and nine other countries after a 9.1 magnitude quake off the coast of Indonesia's Aceh province triggered a tsunami as high as 17.4 meters (57 feet).
    Northern Aceh province bore the brunt of the disaster, where a total of 128,858 people were killed, according to statistics compiled by the government and aid agencies.
    Many lost their lives as little information on tsunami evacuation was spread at that time.
    "I always tell the younger generation if you live or near to the beach areas like us, and if there is a strong earthquake after the shock has stopped just run away because there might be no more time. In the past why didn't we run? Because we didn't know," said 70-year-old's Mundiyah binti Sahan who sell souvenir near a tsunami ruins.
    Local officials said they have put in more efforts on tsunami mitigation and educating the communities. Almost every village in the province has at least one tsunami-damaged building, that serves as a reminder of the killer waves' destructive power.
    More than 25,600 buildings remain in the "red zone" that is considered prone to tsunamis, liquefaction and flooding, according to Banda Aceh's public works and urban housing agency.
    (Production: Hidayatullah, Heru Asprihanto, Angie Teo)
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