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23 become 28!! September 2005 UpdateWe have managed to build and deliver another 5 boats before the rainy season sets in. These 5 have gone to a variety of homes. 3 have been donated as taxi boats to replace those wiped out on the island of Phi Phi. I heard a harrowing account from one of the surviving taxi boat drivers of how he rode the Tsunami inshore fully loaded with 6 Canadian tourists. The boat was smashed onto the beach but they all managed to survive. As they were hurled in towards the shore they sped past less fortunate people who had capsized from their taxi boats, few of those survived...
One of the boats has been delivered to Rangoon on the border with Burma, more boats are needed there ready for the start of the new fishing season in November. Rangoon is not a tourist destination and so has largely been ignored by local government efforts.
The final boat has gone to a 16 year old fisherman on Lanta island called Mutt. He lost his boat on Lanta island itself as he was helping an elderly Swiss couple escape there submerged bungalow. I hope to follow his story later as he is a remarkable young man who having become fatherless some years ago now supports his mother and two sisters on his own.
Earlier last month I received the sad news that one of my dearest friends and staunch supporters of the charity; Theo van Dort lost his own personal battle with cancer. This is my personal tribute to him. Click Here |
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