Ugly Rumors and Koh Lanta Tsunami Update

Why hasn't there been any coverage at all, at least that anyone I know has seen, of the fate of Koh Lanta? There were deaths here, at least according to many people I've spoken with. Here is the rumor I've heard:

The King's son owns a big fancy resort here on Koh Lanta called Pimalai Resort. He has millions invested and is investing further millionns constructing 80 or more new bungalows on the hillside opposite the beach where Pimalai is located.

It is said that he has used his power and influence, along with that of other "big money" developers here, to block any potentially negative coverage of Koh Lanta and has offered "insurance" as "hush" money to owners of smaller resorts that were badly damaged (and that were uninsured) to ensure that Koh Lanta will become an even more popular destination as an alternative to Koh Phi Phi and even Phuket. I have also heard that there were early attempts to "hush" or minimize the death toll at Koh Phi Phi as well. After all, it is widely reported that the Thai government only last year killed over 3,000 "drug dealers" in extrajudicial executions (that means that the police just went out carte blanche and shot them with impunity). Corruption rules in SE Asia (why should it be any different here than at home?).

I have no idea whether any of this is true or not, but I am passing this information along not only to you, but also to some producers at various news media companies.

Thailand has long been rumored to hush outbreaks of malaria and dengue fever in various locations due to the tendency of such information to spoil its appeal as a vacation paradise.

It certainly is strange that virtually no real news of Koh Lanta has appeared in he international press or even in the Bangkok Post.

Please write me at steve@stevegoodman.com if you have any thoughts or information on this topic.

It is now 9am on the 31st, another beautiful day, except that the water still looks uninviting (though a few people have been swimming, the Thai government still advises against it I've heard).

This site has received almost 5,000 page views over the past 3 days and I've received literaly 50 or more e-mails from folks around the world asking about various resorts, bars, people, conditions, etc. Usually my site gets about 10-20 hits a day. It must be turning up on Google searches for people trying to find out about the fate of this lovely rustic island in Thailand's Andaman Sea.

There is no problem at all to get on or off the island, make phone calls and to access the Internet, yet there is also no official or credible news that I have seen or heard as to water safety, death/injury totals here, etc. kind of makes you wonder, eh? The weather is great and most resorts are just fine, having suffered no, or minor, damage.

However, the water is still not safe to swim in (or so they advise) and tides and currents have not yet normalized. Will disease from harder hit areas nearby make its way here or affect the water supply, etc? Time will tell, but will the newspapers and TV stations be providing true and accurate information about Koh Lanta in particular?

As the news seems to just get worse and worse about the scale of the disaster, we here remain in a strange kind of shock. Why were we so lucky?

Of course there are no answers to questions like this. Any of us could just as easily have been on Koh Phi Phi or on the beach in Phuket or Phang Nga. We were not spared for some special purpose any more than the hundred thousand plus victims' lives were snuffed out for some reason. We live in a world where things happen way outside of our control and influence and we are always (though it is seldom so evident as when you are being washed out so sea without warning) bandied about by often unseen forces greater than ourselves.

In a world where America reelects an idiotic, evil criminal, makes war in the name of peace and compromises individual liberties in the name of freedom... can it be so surprising?

AGAIN - PLEASE HELP THOSE WHO NEED IT

THIS JUST IN:

Here is a report I got from a friend who had written to one of the resorts here that she had stayed at in the past:

Here are news form Narima resort:
"On 26 December, 2004 the wave reached Koh Lanta at about 10:30 a.m., Thailand time. Most resorts and hotels at the beach level are heavily damaged. However, The Narima is mostly on high ground and the wave is not high enough to reach the bungalows and restaurant. Some furniture in our beach area are carried away when the water start to go down. Some pipeline in our swimming pool is broken and all water in the main pool leak into the ground. The pool can not be open until we can repair all the damaged pipes.

Although there were some Narima guests on the beach when the wave arrived, everybody could escape to high ground in time and nobody got hurt. We also had some guests gone diving near Phi Phi island. Strangely enough, all they could feel was that the current became very strong and they got in the boat and back to Narima safely.

All infrastructures in Krabi and Koh Lanta are OK (airport, roads, water, telephone & electricity). We anticipate that the way of living in Koh Lanta will come back to normal in a couple of weeks.

Our resort stay open as usual but the pool will be close until all the repair work is complete (about one week).

Best regards,

Yodchai & Nopawan

ALSO, from this site:

On Koh Lanta, the Pimalai Resort & Spa has had damage to some beachfront villas and a beach restaurant. The Royal Lanta Resort is running despite minor disruptions and damage to the pool while the Twin Bay Resort is closed till late 2005.

Comments

[Gregory Leckrone]

Glad to hear you did well on Koh Lantra--you were right about Google--I searched Lantra because my swedish friend Margaretta had been there and I hope she is in europe--even if she is there it looks good for you...

[mark]

I was staying in Bee Bee's on Christmas Day last year 2003. Having made friends on Lanta, Jum and Phi Phi last year I have been trying to find information on how Lanta suffered with it seemingly being nearer the epicentre. I have been surprised at the lack of mention of Lanta, Jum and the smaller islands and thought that these islands may suffer badly. It seems a little more hopeful now that I have read your report.

[Nicole]

I have been searching and searching for news about Koh Lanta and have found next to nothing on the conditions there. Koh Lanta is a place very dear to me and my husband's hearts as we spent our honeymoon at Sri lanta Resort in Feb. of 2003. Could anyone tell us the condition there. Not only are we concerned about the resort itself but we are even more concerned about the wonderful and kind staff who treated us so well. We hope they and their families are safe. We want to be able to help them if we can. Please send any info possible.

With deep warmth,

Anu and Nicole Schwartz

[Gijsbert Roodenburg]

Anu and Nicole, we at SriLanta are doing fine. None of our guests or staff members sustained any injuries. We did have some damage to the facilities by the beach but repair works, cleaning-up and landscaping are progressing well and we will re-open within a couple of days.

Wishing you all the best and we hope to welcome you again to SriLanta in the not too distant future.

Gijsbert Roodenburg
General Manager

[lynda bailey]

We sent an e-mail to the staff at the Moonlight resort ( half way down the west coast)on Koh lanta where we stayed in November. Their general manager replied to say they are all safe and well and relatively unscarred although he did not go into much detail. Having sifted through the little info I could find on Koh Lanta on the internet it seems most of the damage was in the North west of the island and no actual deaths reported.

Lynda Bailey

London

[ciaran tierney]

Hi,

I was just wondering if the staff of the Ozone bar on Long Beach are safe and sound. I stayed in Palm Beach resort over the past two winters and befriended Buoy, Ruud, Leo, etc, who are all from Krabi,

Ciaran Tierney, Galway, Ireland